The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• General Introduction.
• Life of Geoffrey Chaucer.
• List of Chaucer’s Works.
• Errata and Addenda.
• Introduction.: the Romaunt of the Rose.
• Introduction: the Minor Poems.
• The Romaunt of the Rose.
• Fragment A.: Le Roman De La Rose.
• Fragment B.
• Fragment C.
• The Minor Poems.
• I.: An A. B. C.
• II.: The Compleynte Unto Pite.
• III.: The Book of the Duchesse.
• IV.: The Compleynt of Mars.
• V.: The Parlement of Foules.
• VI.: A Compleint to His Lady.
• VII.: Anelida and Arcite.
• VIII.: Chaucers Wordes Unto Adam, His Owne Scriveyn.
• IX.: The Former Age.
• X.: Fortune.
• XI.: Merciles Beaute: a Triple Roundel.
• XII.: To Rosemounde. a Balade.
• XIII.: Truth.
• XIV.: Gentilesse.
• XV.: Lak of Stedfastnesse.
• XVI.: Lenvoy De Chaucer a Scogan.
• XVII.: Lenvoy De Chaucer a Bukton.
• XVIII.: The Compleynt of Venus.
• XIX.: The Compleint of Chaucer to His Empty Purse.
• XX.: Proverbs.
• Appendix.
• XXI.: Against Women Unconstant.
• XXII.: An Amorous Compleint. (compleint Damours.)
• XXIII.: A Balade of Compleynt.
• Notes to the Romaunt of the Rose.
• Notes to the Minor Poems.

XXIII.

A BALADE OF COMPLEYNT.

In MS. Addit. 16165, fol. 256, back; headed Balade of compleynte.

• • Compleyne ne coude , ne might myn herte never^[ ]
  • My peynes halve, ne what torment I have,
  • Though that I sholde in your presence ben ever,
  • My hertes lady, as wisly he me save^[ ]
  • That bountee made, and beutee list to grave5
  • In your persone, and bad hem bothe in-fere
  • Ever tawayte, and ay be wher ye were.
• • As wisly he gye alle my Ioyes here
  • As I am youres, and to yow sad and trewe ,
  • And ye, my lyf and cause of my good chere,10
  • And deeth also, whan ye my peynes newe ,
  • My worldes Ioye, whom I wol serve and sewe ,
  • My heven hool , and al my suffisaunce ,^[ ]
  • Whom for to serve is set al my plesaunce.
• • Beseching yow in my most humble wyse15
  • Taccepte in worth this litel povre dyte,^[ ]
  • And for my trouthe my service nat despyse ,
  • Myn observaunce eek have nat in despyte,
  • Ne yit to long to suffren in this plyte,
  • I yow beseche, myn hertes lady dere ,^[ ]20
  • Sith I yow serve, and so wil yeer by yere .

NOTES TO THE ROMAUNT OF THE ROSE.

The French text, a portion of which is given in the lower part of pp. 93-164, is reprinted from Le Roman de la Rose, ed. Méon, Paris, 1814.

NOTES TO THE MINOR POEMS.

I.

An A B C.

This poem is a rather free translation of a similar poem by Guillaume de Deguileville, as pointed out in the Preface, p. 60. The original is quoted beneath the English text.

Explanations of the harder words should, in general, be sought for in the Glossarial Index, though a few are discussed in the Notes.

The language of this translation is, for the most part, so simple, that but few passages call for remark. I notice, however, a few points.

Chaucer has not adhered to the complex metre of the original, but uses a stanza of eight lines of five accents in place of de Deguileville’s stanza of twelve lines of four accents.

II.

The Compleynte unto Pite.

Title. In MS. B., the poem is entitled, ‘The Complaynte vnto Pyte,’ which is right. In MS. Trin., there is a colophon—‘Here endeth the exclamacioun of the Deth of Pyte’; see p. 276. In MS. Sh. (in Shirley’s handwriting) the poem is introduced with the following words—‘And nowe here filowing [following] begynnethe a complaint of Pitee, made by Geffray Chaucier the aureat Poete that euer was fonde in oure vulgare to-fore hees [for thees?] dayes.’ The first stanza may be considered as forming a Proem; stanzas 2-8, the Story; and the rest, the Bill of Complaint. The title ‘A complaint of Pitee’ is not necessarily incorrect; for of may be taken in the sense of ‘concerning,’ precisely as in the case of ‘The Vision of Piers the Plowman.’ As to the connection of this poem with the Thebaid of Statius, see notes to ll. 57 and 92.

III.

The Book of the Duchesse.

I may remark here that the metre is sometimes difficult to follow; chiefly owing to the fact that the line sometimes begins with an accented syllable, just as, in Milton’s L’Allegro, we meet with lines like ‘Zéphyr, with Aurora playing.’ The accented syllables are sometimes indistinctly marked, and hence arises a difficulty in immediately detecting the right flow of a line. A clear instance of a line beginning with an accented syllable is seen in l. 23—‘Slép’, and thús meláncolýë.’

IV.

The Complaint of Mars.

For general remarks on this poem, see p. 64, above.

By consulting ll. 13 and 14, we see that the whole of this poem is supposed to be uttered by a bird on the 14th of February, before sunrise. Lines 1-28 form the proem; the rest give the story of Mars and Venus, followed by the Complaint of Mars at l. 155. The first 22 stanzas are in the ordinary 7-line stanza. The Complaint is very artificial, consisting of an Introductory Stanza, and five Terns, or sets of three stanzas, making sixteen stanzas of nine lines each, or 144 lines Thus the whole poem has 298 lines.

Each tern is occupied with a distinct subject, which I indicate by headings, viz. Devotion to his Love; Description of a Lady in an anxiety of fear and woe; the Instability of Happiness; the story of the Brooch of Thebes; and An Appeal for Sympathy. A correct appreciation of these various ‘movements’ of the Complaint makes the poem much more intelligible.

V.

The Parlement of Foules.

Title. Gg. has Here begynyth the parlement of Foulys; Harl. has The Parlament of Foules; Tn. has The Parlement of Briddis; Trin. has Here foloweth the parlement of Byrdes reducyd to loue, &c. We also find, at the end of the poem, such notes as these: Gg. Explicit parliamentum Auium in die sancti Valentini tentum secundum Galfridum Chaucer; Ff. Explicit parliamentum Auium; Tn. Explicit tractatus de Congregacione volucrum die Sancti Valentini; and in MS. Arch. Seld. B. 24—Here endis the parliament of foulis Quod Galfride Chaucere.

VI.

A Compleint to his Lady.

In the two MSS., this poem is written as if it were a continuation of the Compleint unto Pity. The printed edition of 1651 has this heading—‘These verses next folowing were compiled by Geffray Chauser, and in the writen copies foloweth at the ende of the complainte of petee.’ This implies that Stowe had seen more than one MS. containing these lines.

However, the poem has nothing to do with the Complaint of Pity; for which reason the lines are here numbered separately, and the title ‘A Compleint to his Lady’ is supplied, for want of a better.

The poem is so badly spelt in Shirley’s MS. (Harl. 78) as quite to obscure its diction, which is that of the fourteenth century. I have therefore re-spelt it throughout, so as to shew the right pronunciation. The Phillipps MS. is merely a copy of the other, but preserves the last stanza.

The printed copy resembles Shirley’s MS. so closely, that both seem to have been derived from a common source. But there is a strange and unaccountable variation in l. 100. The MS. here has—‘For I am sette on yowe in suche manere’; whilst ed. 1561 has—‘For I am set so hy vpon your whele.’ The latter reading does not suit the right order of the rimes; but it points to a lost MS.

The poem evidently consists of several fragments, all upon the same subject, of hopeless, but true love.

It should be compared with the Complaint of Pity, the first forty lines of the Book of the Duchess, the Parliament of Foules (ll. 416-441), and the Complaint of Anelida. Indeed, the last of these is more or less founded upon it, and some of the expressions (including one complete line) occur there again.

VII.

Anelida and Arcite.

This Poem consists of several distinct portions. It begins with a Proem, of three stanzas, followed by a part of the story, in twenty-seven stanzas, all in seven-line stanzas. Next follows the Complaint of Anelida, skilfully and artificially constructed; it consists of a Proem in a single stanza of nine lines; next, what may be called a Strophe, in six stanzas, of which the first four consist of nine lines, the fifth consists of sixteen lines (with only two rimes), and the sixth, of nine lines (with internal rimes). Next follows what may be called an Antistrophe, in six stanzas arranged precisely as before; wound up by a single concluding stanza corresponding to the Proem at the beginning of the Complaint. After this, the story begins again; but the poet had only written one stanza when he suddenly broke off, and left the poem unfinished; see note to l. 357.

The name of Arcite naturally reminds us of the Knightes Tale; but the ‘false Arcite’ of the present poem has nothing beyond the name in common with the ‘true Arcite’ of the Tale. However, there are other connecting links, to be pointed out in their due places, which tend to shew that this poem was written before the Knightes Tale, and was never finished; it is also probable that Chaucer actually wrote an earlier draught of the Knightes Tale, with the title of Palamon and Arcite, which he afterwards partially rejected; for he mentions ‘The Love of Palamon and Arcite’ in the prologue to the Legend of Good Women as if it were an independent work. However this may be, it is clear that, in constructing or rewriting the Knightes Tale, he did not lose sight of ‘Anelida,’ for he has used some of the lines over again; moreover, it is not a little remarkable that the very lines from Statius which are quoted at the beginning of the fourth stanza of Anelida are also quoted, in some of the MSS., at the beginning of the Knightes Tale.

But this is not all. For Dr. Koch has pointed out the close agreement between the opening stanzas of this poem, and those of Boccaccio’s Teseide, which is the very work from which Palamon and Arcite was, of course, derived, as it is the chief source of the Knightes Tale also. Besides this, there are several stanzas from the Teseide in the Parliament of Foules; and even three near the end of Troilus, viz. the seventh, eighth, and ninth from the end of the last book. Hence we should be inclined to suppose that Chaucer originally translated the Teseide rather closely, substituting a seven-line stanza for the ottava rima of the original; this formed the original Palamon and Arcite, a poem which he probably never finished (as his manner was). Not wishing, however, to abandon it altogether, he probably used some of the lines in this present poem, and introduced others into his Parliament of Foules. At a later period, he rewrote, in a complete form, the whole story in his own fashion, which has come down to us as The Knightes Tale. Whatever the right explanation may be, we are at any rate certain that the Teseide is the source of (1) sixteen stanzas in the Parliament of Foules; (2) of part of the first ten stanzas in the present poem; (3) of the original Palamon and Arcite; (4) of the Knightes Tale; and (5) of three stanzas near the end of Troilus, bk. v. 1807-27 (Tes. xi. 1-3).

VIII.

Chaucers Wordes unto Adam.

Only extant in MS. T., written by Shirley, and in Stowe’s edition of 1561. Dr. Koch says—‘It seems that Stowe has taken his text from Shirley, with a few modifications in spelling, and altered Shirley’s Scriveyn into scrivener, apparently because that word was out of use in his time. Scriveyn is O. Fr. escrivain, F. écrivain. Lines 3 and 4 are too long [in MS. T. and Stowe], but long and more are unnecessary for the sense, wherefore I have omitted them.’ Dr. Sweet omits long, but retains more, though it sadly clogs the line. Again, in l. 2, we find for to, where for is superfluous.

IX.

The Former Age.

‘The former Age’ is a title taken from l. 2 of the poem. In MS. Hh., at the end, are the words—‘Finit Etas prima: Chaucers.’

Both MSS. are poor, and omit a whole line (l. 56), which has to be supplied by conjecture; as we have no other authority. The spelling requires more emendation than usual.

The poem is partly a verse translation of Boethius, De Consolatione Philosophiæ, lib. ii. met. 5. We possess a prose translation by Chaucer of the entire work (see vol. II. p. 40). This therefore contains the same passage in prose; and the prose translation is, of course, a much closer rendering of the original. Indeed there is nothing in the original which corresponds to the last four stanzas of the present poem, excepting a hint for l. 62.

The work of Boethius, in Latin, consists of five books. Each book contains several sections, written in prose and verse alternately. Hence it is usual to refer to bk. ii. prose 5 (liber ii. prosa 5); bk. ii. metre 5 (liber ii. metrum 5); and the like. These divisions are very useful in finding one’s place.

Chaucer was also indebted to Ovid, Metam. i. 89-112, for part of this description of the Golden Age; of which see Dryden’s fine translation. See also Le Roman de la Rose, ll. 8395-8492: and compare the Complaint of Scotland, ed. Murray, p. 144; and Dante, Purg. xxii. 148. For further remarks, see the Introduction.

X.

Fortune.

This poem consists of three Ballads and an Envoy. Each Ballad contains three stanzas of eight lines, with the rimes a b a b b c b c, and the rimes of the second and third stanzas are precisely the same as those of the first. Thus the rime a recurs six times, the rime b twelve times, and the rime c likewise six times. Moreover, each stanza ends with the same line, recurring as a refrain. Hence the metrical difficulties are very great, and afford a convincing proof of Chaucer’s skill. The Envoy is of seven lines, rimed a b a b b a b.

The three ballads are called, collectively, Balades de visage sanz peinture, a title which is correctly given in MS. I., with the unlucky exception that visage has been turned into vilage. This curious blunder occurs in all the MSS. and old editions, and evidently arose from mistaking a long s (f) for an l. Vilage, of course, makes no sense; and we are enabled to correct it by help of Chaucer’s translation of Boethius, bk. ii. pr. 1; l. 39. ‘Right swich was she [Fortune] whan she flatered thee, and deceived thee with unleveful lykinges of fals welefulnesse. Thou hast now knowen and ataynt the doutous or double visage of thilke blinde goddesse Fortune. She, that yit covereth hir and wimpleth hir to other folk, hath shewed hir everydel to thee.’ Or the Ballads may refer to the unmasking of false friends: ‘Fortune hath departed and uncovered to thee bothe the certein visages and eek the doutous visages of thy felawes’; id. bk. ii. pr. 8; l. 25. The whole poem is more or less founded on the descriptions of Fortune in Boethius; and we thus see that the visage meant is the face of Fortune, or else the face of a supposed friend, which is clearly revealed to the man of experience, in the day of adversity, without any covering or wimpling, and even without any painting or false colouring.

In MS. T. we are told that ‘here filoweþe [followeth] a balade made by Chaucier of þe louer and of Dame Fortune.’ In MS. A. we are told that ‘here foloweþe nowe a compleynte of þe Pleintyff agenst fortune translated oute of Frenshe into Englisshe by þat famous Rethorissyen Geffrey Chaucier.’ This hint, that it is translated out of French, can scarcely be right, unless Shirley (whose note this is) means that it partially resembles passages in Le Roman de la Rose; for Chaucer’s work seems to contain some reminiscences of that poem as well as of the treatise of Boethius, though of course Le Roman is indebted to Boethius also.

Le Pleintif is the complainant, the man who brings a charge against Fortune, or rather, who exclaims against her as false, and defies her power. The first Ballad, then, consists of this complaint and defiance.

The close connection between this poem and Boethius is shewn by the fact that (like the preceding poem called The Former Age) it occurs in an excellent MS. of Chaucer’s translation of Boethius, viz. MS. I. (Ii. 3. 21, in the Cambridge University Library). I may also remark here, that there is a somewhat similar dialogue between Nobilitas and Fortuna in the Anticlaudianus of Alanus de Insulis, lib. viii. c. 2; see Anglo-Latin Satirists, ed. T. Wright, ii. 401.

In Morley’s English Writers, ii. 283, is the following description. ‘The argument of the first part [or Ballad] is: I have learnt by adversity to know who are my true friends; and he can defy Fortune who is master of himself. The argument of the next part [second Ballad], that Fortune speaks, is: Man makes his own wretchedness. What may come you know not; you were born under my rule of change; your anchor holds. Of the third part of the poem [third Ballad], in which the Poet and Fortune each speak, the sum of the argument is, that what blind men call fortune is the righteous will of God. Heaven is firm, this world is mutable. The piece closes with Fortune’s call upon the Princes to relieve this man of his pain, or pray his best friend “of his noblesse” that he may attain to some better estate.’

The real foundation of these three Ballads is (1) Boethius, bk. ii. proses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, and met. 1; and (2) a long passage in Le Roman de la Rose, ll. 4853-4994 (Eng. version, 5403-5584). More particular references are given below.

XI.

Merciless Beauty.

The title ‘Mercilesse Beaute’ is given in the Index to the Pepys MS. As it is a fitting title, and no other has been suggested, it is best to use it.

I think this Roundel was suggested by one written in French, in the thirteenth century, by Willamme d’Amiens, and printed in Bartsch, Chrestomathie de l’ancien Français. It begins—

• ‘Jamais ne serai saous
• D’esguarder les vairs ieus dous
• Qui m’ont ocis’;—

i. e. I shall never be sated with gazing on the gray soft eyes which have slain me.

XII.

To Rosemounde.

This graceful Balade is a happy specimen of Chaucer’s skill in riming. The metre is precisely that of ‘Fortune,’ resembling that of the Monkes Tale with the addition of a refrain; only the same rimes are used throughout. The formula is a b a b b c b c.

XIII.

Truth.

The Titles are: Gg. Balade de bone conseyl; Lansd. 699, La bon Counseil de le Auttour; Caxton, The good counceyl of Chawcer; Harl. Moral balade of Chaucyre. Shirley calls it—Balade that Chaucier made on his deeth-bedde; a note that has been frequently repeated, and is probably no better than a bad guess.

XIV.

Gentilesse.

For remarks upon Scogan’s quotation of this Ballad in full, see the Introduction.

The titles are: Harl. Moral balade of Chaucier; T. Balade by Chaucier.

Caxton’s text is unusually good, and is often superior to that in the existing MSS.

The general idea of the poem is that Christ was the true pattern of ‘gentleness’ or gentility, i. e. of noble behaviour. Cf. Dekker’s noble line, in which he speaks of Christ as ‘The first true gentleman that ever breathed.’

But the finest poetical essay upon this subject is that by Chaucer himself, in the Wife of Bath’s Tale; C. T. 6691-6758 (D 1109); which see. And cf. Tale of Melibeus, B 2831-2.

Another passage on this subject occurs in the Eng. version of the Romance of the Rose, ll. 2188-2202, which, curiously enough, is in neither Michel’s nor Méon’s edition of the French Poem (in which l. 2184 of the E. version is immediately succeeded by l. 2203 of the same). Again, in Le Roman de la Rose, ll. 6603-6616, there is a definition of Gentillesce; but this passage is not in the Eng. version.

The original passage, to which both Chaucer and Jean de Meun were indebted, is one in Boethius, bk. iii. pr. 6; which Chaucer thus translates:—‘For yif the name of gentilesse be referred to renoun and cleernesse of linage, than is gentil name but a foreine thing, that is to seyn, to hem that glorifyen hem of hir linage. For it semeth that gentilesse be a maner preysinge that comth of deserte of ancestres . . yif thou ne have no gentilesse of thy-self—that is to seyn, preyse that comth of thy deserte—foreine gentilesse ne maketh thee nat gentil.’ And again, just below, in metre 6:—‘On allone is fader of thinges . . Thanne comen alle mortal folk of noble sede; why noisen ye or bosten of youre eldres?’ But we must not overlook a long passage near the end of Le Roman de la Rose, ll. 18807-19096, which Chaucer certainly also consulted. I quote some of these lines below.

XV.

Lak of Stedfastnesse.

In MS. Harl. 7333 is the following note, probably correct:—‘This balade made Geffrey Chauuciers the Laureall Poete of Albion, and sent it to his souerain lorde kynge Rycharde the secounde, thane being in his Castell of Windesore.’ In MS. T. is the heading:—‘Balade Royal made by oure laureal poete of Albyon in hees laste yeeres’; and above l. 22 is:—‘Lenvoye to Kyng Richard.’ In MS. F. it is simply headed ‘Balade.’ For another allusion to King Richard at Windsor, see note to Lenvoy to Scogan, l. 43.

The general idea is taken from Boethius, bk. ii. met. 8, which Chaucer thus translates:—‘That the world with stable feith varieth acordable chaunginges, that the contrarious qualitee of elements holden among hem-self aliaunce perdurable, . . . al this acordaunce of thinges is bounden with love, that governeth erthe and see, and hath also commaundements to the hevenes. And yif this love slakede the brydeles, alle thinges that now loven hem to-gederes wolden maken a bataile continuely, and stryven to fordoon the fasoun of this worlde, the whiche they now leden in acordable feith by faire moevinges . . . O weleful were mankinde, yif thilke love that governeth hevene governed youre corages!’

XVI.

Lenvoy a Scogan.

There are but three MSS., all much alike. As to Scogan, see the Introduction. MSS. F. and P. have the heading—‘Lenvoy de Chaucer a Scogan’; Gg. has—‘Litera directa de Scogon per G. C.’

XVII.

Lenvoy a Bukton.

XVIII.

Compleynt of Venus.

This poem has frequently been printed as if it formed a part of The Compleynt of Mars; but it is a separate poem, and belongs to a later period.

The Compleynt of Mars is an original poem; but the present poem is a translation, being partly adapted, and partly translated from three Balades by Sir Otes de Graunson (l. 82). The original Balades have been lately recovered by Dr. Piaget, and are printed below the text. See the Introduction.

It consists of three Ballads and an Envoy, and bears a strong resemblance, in metrical form, to the poem on Fortune, each Ballad having three stanzas of eight lines each, with a refrain. It differs from ‘Fortune’ only in the arrangement of the rimes, which occur in the order a b a b b c c b, instead of (as in Fortune) in the order a b a b b c b c. One rime (in -aunce) occurs in the second Ballad as well as in the first; but this is quite an accidental detail, of no importance. It must be remembered that the metre was not chosen by Chaucer, but by Graunson. The Envoy, which alone is original, consists of ten lines, rimed a a b a a b b a a b. This arrangement is very unusual. See further in the note to l. 82.

In the MSS. T. and A. we have notes of some importance, written by Shirley. T. has:—‘The Compleynt of Venus. And filowing begynnethe a balade translated out of frenshe in-to englisshe by Chaucier, Geffrey; the frenshe made sir Otes de Grauntsome, knight Savosyen.’ A. has:—‘Here begynnethe a balade made by that worthy Knight of Savoye in frenshe, calde sir Otes Graunson; translated by Chauciers.’ At the end of the copy in T. is:—‘Hit is sayde that Graunsome made this last balade for Venus, resembled to my lady of york; aunswering the complaynt of Mars.’ We certainly find that Chaucer has materially altered the first of the three Balades; so perhaps he wished to please his patron. But the title (probably not Chaucer’s) is a bad one. See the Introduction. Cf. note to l. 73.

XIX.

The Compleint to his empty Purse.

The date of the Envoy to this Poem can be determined almost to a day. Henry IV. was received as king by the parliament, Sept. 30, 1399. Chaucer received his answer, in the shape of an additional grant of forty marks yearly, on Oct. 3 of the same year. Consequently, the date of the Envoy is Sept. 30 or Oct. 1 or 2 in that year. It is obvious that the poem itself had been written (perhaps some time) beforehand; see note to l. 17. As far as we know, the Envoy is Chaucer’s last work.

A somewhat similar complaint was addressed to the French king John II. by G. de Machault in 1351-6; but it is in short rimed lines; see his works, ed. Tarbé, p. 78. But the real model which Chaucer had in view was, in my opinion, the Ballade by Eustache Deschamps, written in 1381, and printed in Tarbé’s edition, at p. 55.

This Ballade is of a similar character, having three stanzas of eight lines each, with a somewhat similar refrain, viz. ‘Mais de paier n’y sçay voie ne tour,’ i.e. but how to pay I know therein no way nor method. It was written on a similar occasion, viz. after the death of Charles V. of France, and the accession of Charles VI., who had promised Deschamps a pension, but had not paid it. Hence the opening lines:—

• ‘Dieux absoille le bon Roy trespassé!
• Et Dieux consault cellui qui est en vie!
• Il me donna rente le temps passé
• A mon vivant; laquelle je n’ay mie.’

The Envoy has but six lines, though the stanzas have eight; similarly, Chaucer’s Envoy has but five lines (rimed a a b b a), though the stanzas have seven. Chaucer’s Envoy is in a very unusual metre, which was copied by the author of the Cuckoo and the Nightingale.

The Title, in MS. F. is—‘The Complaynt of Chaucer to his Purse.’ In Caxton’s print, it is—‘The compleint of Chaucer vnto his empty purse.’ In MS. P.—‘La Compleint de Chaucer a sa Bourse voide.’ MS. Harl. has—‘A supplicacion to Kyng Richard by chaucier.’ The last of these, written by Shirley, is curious. If not a mere mistake, it seems to imply that the Complaint was first prepared before king Richard was deposed, though, by means of the Envoy, it was addressed to his successor. However, this copy of Shirley’s gives the Envoy; so it may have been a mere mistake. Line 23 is decisive; see note below.

I remark here, for completeness’ sake, that this poem has sometimes been ascribed to Hoccleve; but, apparently, without any reason.

XX.

Proverbs.

The titles in the MSS. are: Ad. Prouerbe; F. Proverbe of Chaucer; Ha. Prouerbe of Chaucers.

Each proverb takes the form of a question or objection, in two lines, followed by an answer in two lines more.

There is a fair copy of them (but not well spelt) in the black-letter edition of 1561, fol. cccxl. They there appear without the addition of fourteen unconnected lines (not by Chaucer) which have been recklessly appended to them in modern editions. The title in ed. 1561 is—‘A Prouerbe agaynst couitise and negligence.’

For the metre, compare the Envoy to a Ballad by Deschamps, ed. Tarbé, pp. 23, 24.

XXI.

Balade against Women unconstant.

XXII.

An Amorous Compleint (Compleint Damours).

There are three MS. copies of this poem, viz. in MSS. F., B., and Harl. 7333. See remarks upon these in the Introduction, p. 89.

XXIII.

A Balade of Compleynt.

printed in great britain at the university press, oxford by vivian ridler, printer to the university

[P. 123: l. 705.]It would be better to read ‘Withoute.’ The scansion then is:

Without | e fabl’ | I wol | descryve.

[P. 126: l. 793.]Delete the comma at the end of the line.

[P. 127: l. 806.]Delete the comma at the end of the line.

[P. 135: l. 997.]For shall read shal

[P. 136: ll. 1015-6.]Improve the punctuation thus:—

As whyt as lilie or rose in rys

Hir face, gentil and tretys.

[P. 136: l. 1021.]Delete the comma after ‘yelowe’

[P. 141: l. 1154.]Delete the comma after ‘seide’

[P. 201: l. 4035.]For the comma substitute a semicolon.

[P. 301: l. 716.]The comma should perhaps be a semicolon or a full stop.

[592. ]G. answeride; Th. answerde.

[603. ]G. hidre be; Th. hyther be. Both fette.

[604. ]G. sette; Th. ysette.

[605. ]Both hight.

[606. ]Both sight.

[617. ]Th. therin; G. therynne.

[623. ]Th. playen in; G. pleyn ynne.

[631. ]Th. Than; G. Thanne.

[645, 653. ]Th. in; G. Inne.

[654. ]Both thought.

[655. ]Th. byrde; G. bridde; read brid.

[660. ]Both places (badly).

[661. ]Both might.

[668. ]Both That (for These).

[673. ]Th. whan; G. that. Th. herde; G. herd.

[676. ]Both myght.

[684. ]Both clepe.

[688. ]Th. But; G. For. Both om. hir.

[699. ]Th. gardyn; G. gardyne.

[700. ]G. inne; Th. in.

[701. ]G. hens-; wrought.

[702. ]Both thought.

[709. ]Both wrought.

[716. ]Th. her; G. their. Th. iargonyng; G. yarkonyng.

[718. ]Th. ispronge; G. spronge.

[720. ]Th. reuelrye; G. reuerye; see French.

[728. ]Both sight (wrongly).

[732. ]Th. faste; G. fast. Both without.

[739. ]Th. whence; G. whenne. Both might.

[741, 2. ]Both sight, bright.

[743. ]Th. These; G. This.

[745. ]Both hyght.

[746. ]Both blisfull. Th. and lyght; G. and the light; see 797.

[749. ]Both add couthe before make.

[760. ]I supply ther.

[761. ]Both made (for make).

[770. ]Th. saylours; G. saillouris.

[773. ]Both hente; I supply hem.

[776. ]G. damysels; Th. damosels.

[782. ]Both lieth.

[783. ]Both queyntly; see l. 569.

[791. ]Both bode; read bede; see note.

[798. ]Both pray to God.

[801. ]I supply neer.

[806. ]Both it to me liked.

[811. ]Both right blythe; om. right.

[812. ]Th. Than; G. Thanne.

[819. ]Th. appel; G. appille.

[834. ]Both first.

[836. ]Both samette.

[837. ]Both beten ful; om. ful.

[844. ]Both drury.

[845. ]Th. rosen; G. rosyn.

[848. ]Both gladnesse.

[859. ]G. seye; Th. sey (for sayn).

[860. ]G. pleye; Th. pley (for pleyn).

[861. ]Both Bent.

[863. ]Both laugheden.

[865. ]Both I wot not what of hir nose I shal descryve (eleven syllables).

[869. ]Th. orfrayes.

[870. ]Th. whiche; G. which. Th. sene; G. seyen.

[873. ]Th. samyte; G. samet.

[875, 6. ]Th. werde, ferde; G. werede, ferede. Both ins. hir bef. herte.

[877. ]Th. on; G. in.

[879. ]Both Love, and as hym likith it be.

[887. ]Th. prise; G. preyse.

[890. ]Th. ycladde: G. clad.

[891. ]G. and in; Th. om. in.

[893. ]Th. losenges; G. losynges.

[897. ]Th. Ypurtrayed; G. Portreied, Th. ywrought; G. wrought.

[900. ]Th. Yset; G. Sett.

[902. ]Th. moche; G. mych.

[903, 4. ]Both peruynke, thynke.

[906. ]G. -melled; Th. -medled; see l. 898.

[923. ]Both Turke bowes two, full wel deuysed had he (too long).

[928. ]Th. any; G. ony.

[929, 930. ]Th. plante, warante; G. plant, warant. Both Without.

[932. ]G. Treitys; Th. Trectes. Both ins. ful after of.

[933. ]G. twythen; Th. thwitten (printed twhitten).

[936. ]I supply ful.

[939. ]Th. helde; G. hilde

[942. ]Th. aryght; G. right.

[944. ]G. peynted (!).

[945. ]Th. sharpe; G. sharp. Th. wele; G. welle.

[946. ]Th. stele; G. steelle.

[948. ]Th. Out take; G. Outake.

[953. ]G. lasse; Th. lesse.

[958. ]Th. companye; G. compaigny.

[959. ]Both shoten; see l. 989.

[960. ]For right read nigh (K.).

[964. ]Both leest.

[969. ]Th. soner; G. sonner.

[970. ]Th. Hys; G. Hir. Th. ought be; G. ought to be.

[973. ]Both for to telle.

[984. ]Both on; read of (K.).

[991. ]Both And contrarye.

[998. ]Th. booke; G. book.

[1007. ]G. Th. And; read As was; F. Ainsinc cum.

[1010. ]I supply is.

[1015. ]For As read And (K.).

[1017. ]Both smale.

[1018. ]Both wyntred; see l. 1020.

[1026. ]Both thought; read thinketh (K.).

[1031. ]Both Sore (!); read Wys (?).

[1034. ]Both And hight (!).

[1037. ]Both in werk (!).

[1043. ]G. and the; Th. om. the.

[1045. ]Th. weren; G. were.

[1058. ]Th. But; G. And. Th. prill; G. prile; prob. error for prike, or prikke.

[1062. ]Th. and wyse; G. ywys.

[1063. ]G. haue do; Th. and ydon.

[1065. ]Th. And maketh; G. Haue maad.

[1066. ]G. om. as. Both ought.

[1068. ]Th. aryued; G. achyued.

[1071. ]G. purpur; Th. purple.

[1073. ]Th. it; G. hir.

[1080. ]Th. amyled; Speght, ameled; G. enameled.

[1082 ]G. shete; Th. shette.

[1089. ]Both durst (!); read thurte or thurfte.

[1092. ]Th. mannes; G. man.

[1098. ]G. om. of. Both tothe.

[1101. ]Th. thylke; G. thilk.

[1102. ]Both myght.

[1109. ]Both light.

[1111. ]Th. he; G. she.

[1112. ]Both deuyse.

[1116. ]Th. the; G. that.

[1117. ]Both ragounces (!).

[1125. ]Morris supplies tho.

[1132. ]G. mych.

[1134. ]Th. loued wel to haue; G. loued to haue well.

[1137. ]Th. an; G. ony.

[1139. ]Th. ben; G. be.

[1141. ]Th. Was; G. And.

[1142. ]Th. or defence; G. of diffense.

[1144. ]Th. dispences; G. dispence.

[1146. ]Th. for to spende; G. for to dispende; see 1157.

[1147. ]Th. lackynge; G. lakke.

[1150. ]Th. sette; G. settith.

[1162. ]G. om. wys.

[1166. ]Th. craftely; G. tristely.

[1172. ]Th. nygarde; G. nygart.

[1176. ]G. om. him.

[1178. ]Th. wyl; G. wille.

[1182. ]Th. adamant; G. adamaund.

[1187. ]Th. fresshe; G. fresh.

[1188. ]G. sarlynysh; Th. Sarlynyssche.

[1199. ]Both sibbe. Th. Arthour; G. Artour. Th. Breteigne; G. Britaigne.

[1200. ]Th. enseigne; G. ensaigne.

[1201. ]Both gousfaucoun.

[1205. ]Both newly.

[1206. ]Th. tourneyeng; G. tourneryng.

[1207. ]Th. There; G. The.

[1210. ]Both He caste.

[1214. ]Th. yfallen; G. falle.

[1219. ]Th. on; G. of.

[1221. ]Both durst.

[1227, 8. ]Both bistadde, adradde.

[1230. ]Th. taswage.

[1233. ]Th. hempe; G. hempe ne (for hempene).

[1235. ]G. ridled; Th. ryddeled.

[1236. ]G. om. nat. Both a; read oo.

[1238. ]Th. yclothed; G. clothed.

[1244. ]Both Bitokeneth.

[1247, 8. ]Both hight.

[1255. ]Th. om. right.

[1259. ]G. and of; Th. om. of.

[1261. ]G. om. 1st no.

[1263. ]G. wenaunt (!).

[1265. ]G. om. were.

[1274. ]Both fast.

[1275. ]Both without.

[1282. ]Both And she; read Youthe; see 1302.

[1288. ]Th. yonge; G. yong. Th. wel; G. wole.

[1303. ]Both that; read thus; see 1310.

[1307. ]Both faire; truly (truely).

[1308. ]Both were.

[1313. ]G. loreyes; Th. Laurelles.

[1315. ]Th. ended; G. eended (= y-ended?).

[1323. ]Both myght.

[1324. ]Both durst (for thurte).

[1326. ]Both As to haue.

[1332. ]Both she (for 2nd he).

[1334. ]Both hadde (for bad); bent; om. it.

[1335. ]I supply it. Both an (for on).

[1339. ]Both sittith.

[1340. ]Both he kepe me; (om. he).

[1341. ]G. hadde me shette; Th. had me shete.

[1342. ]G. mette; Th. mete.

[1343. ]Both had me greued.

[1348. ]Both hadde in all the gardyn be.

[1359. ]G. of gret; Th. om. of.

[1360. ]Th. nuttes.

[1363. ]Both almandres.

[1365. ]Th. weren; G. wexen.

[1366. ]Read Throughout the yerd?

[1369. ]Th. Gyngere; G. Gyngevre. Both Parys (!).

[1375. ]Th. plommes. Th. chesteynis; G. chesteyns.

[1376. ]G. Cherys; Th. Cheryse. G. which.

[1379. ]Th. laurer; G. lorey (!).

[1381. ]G. olyuers; Th. olyueris.

[1384. ]Both oke.

[1397, 8. ]Th. knytte, sytte; see Parl. Fo. 628.

[1399. ]Th. myght there noon.

[1400. ]I supply it.

[1403. ]Th. bowe; Speght, bough (twice).

[1404. ]Th. Connes.

[1405, 6. ]Th. clapers, maners.

[1411, 2. ]Th. wel, tel.

[1413, 4. ]Th. deuyse, condyse

[1423. ]Th. the erthe; see 1428.

[1424. ]Th. wel.

[1425. ]Th. Spronge; see l. 1419.

[1428. ]Th. suche.

[1429. ]Th. hath.

[1431. ]Th. vyolet.

[1440. ]Th. dilectable.

[1445, 6. ]Th. lefte.

[1447. ]Th. garden; read yerde in (K.); cf. 1366 (note).

[1448. ]Th. efters (!).

[1452. ]Th. beest.

[1453. ]Th. shoten; read shete.

[1453. ]Th. goodmesse; see 3462.

[1456. ]Th. Besydes.

[1474. ]Th. that hight; (om. that).

[1482. ]Th. feirs.

[1485. ]G. om. hir.

[1486. ]Th. hert.

[1488. ]Th. without.

[1489. ]Th. deyde; G. dide.

[1495. ]Both might to; I omit to.

[1496. ]Th. Than; G. And that. Th. shulde he; G. he shulde.

[1498. ]G. velaynesly; Th. vilaynously.

[1500. ]Th. ferme; G. forme.

[1503. ]G. resten; Th. rest. G. that; Th. the.

[1508. ]G. heet; Th. herte (for heete).

[1510. ]Both wel. Th. y-comen; G. comen.

[1515. ]G. he straught; Th. out-straught.

[1516. ]Both draught.

[1517, 8. ]G. seen, sheen; Th. sene, shene.

[1520. ]Th. had; G. was.

[1527. ]Both musede so.

[1528. ]Th. om. al.

[1534. ]Both comforte.

[1550. ]G. scathles; Th. scathlesse.

[1552. ]Th. abasshen; G. abaisshen.

[1561, 2. ]Both bright, hight.

[1573, 4. ]Both sight, bright.

[1581. ]Both foule.

[1583. ]Both you to; I omit to.

[1585. ]Both mirrour.

[1586. ]G. stondith; Th. stondeth.

[1591. ]Both entrees.

[1593, 4. ]Both ye (for he).

[1601, 1605. ]Both mirrour.

[1604. ]So Th.; G. swithe to ligge.

[1605. ]Th. loke; G. loketh.

[1608. ]Both laughyng (!); read loving.

[1609. ]G. om. a.

[1610 ]Th. Y-blent; G. Blent.

[1617. ]Th. sowen; G. sowne.

[1621, 2. ]Both panters, bachelers.

[1638. ]G. fast; Th. faste.

[1641. ]I supply have. Both sighed (for syked).

[1642, 9. ]Both mirrour.

[1644. ]Th. vertue; G. vertues. I supply the. Both strengthes; read strengthe.

[1646. ]Both had.

[1648. ]G. bitrisshed; Th. bytresshed.

[1649. ]Th. thylke; G. thilk.

[1652. ]Th. enclos; G. enclosid.

[1663. ]Th. G. me; read be (F. fusse).

[1666. ]So Th.; G. Me thankis. G. wole; Th. wol; read wolde.

[1671, 2. ]Both -thought, wrought.

[1673. ]Both ther were; both wone.

[1674. ]Th. ware; G. waxe; both Rone.

[1679. ]Th. faste; G. fast.

[1683. ]G. wille; Th. wyl. Th. fresshe; G. fresh.

[1687. ]Both myght haue.

[1688. ]G. lief; Th. lefe.

[1689. ]I supply a

[1694. ]G. it in; Th. om it.

[1695. ]G. enlomyned.

[1698. ]Both hath; om. wel?

[1700. ]Both roses.

[1701. ]Th. rysshe; G. rish.

[1705. ]Th. dyed (for dide; wrongly).

[2492. ]Both domme.

[2494, 2521. ]Th. faste; G. fast.

[2499. ]G. yitt; Th. yet (for yif).

[2532. ]I supply thy; F. ta raison. Th. durste; G. derst.

[2541. ]a] Th. o.

[2550. ]Th. batell; G. batelle.

[2563, 4. ]Th. a-brede, forwerede; G. abrode, forweriede; see 3251.

[2569. ]seme] Both se.

[2576. ]Th. slombrest.

[2578. ]G. om. a.

[2610. ]Th. Withouten; G. Without. Th. kesse; G. kysse.

[2617. ]Both I wote not; read I noot.

[2619. ]Both better.

[2621. ]Both on hir I caste.

[2622. ]Both That (for Than).

[2628. ]Both liggen.

[2649. ]Th. shalt; G. shalle.

[2650. ]Both whider (!).

[2655, 6. ]Th. aferde, vnsperde; G. afeerd, unspered.

[2660. ]Th. shore.

[2664. ]Th. thy; G. the.

[2668. ]Both without.

[2669. ]Both om. a.

[2675. ]Th. whan; G. whanne; read wham or whom; F. De qui tu ne pues avoir aise.

[2676. ]Corrupt; F. Au departir la porte baise. Th. awey; G. away.

[2683. ]Th. ins. any (G. only) bef. wene.

[2687. ]Th. selfe; G. silf.

[2688. ]Th. assayed; G. assaid.

[2690. ]Both for to (for to).

[2693. ]Th. ofte; G. of.

[2697. ]Th. dothe; G. doith.

[2700. ]I supply hir.

[2709, 2710. ]Both more, fore; read mare, fare. I supply thee.

[2712. ]Perhaps omit to.

[2729. ]Th. Aye; G. A-yee.

[2746. ]I supply may.

[2748. ]Th. great; G. greet.

[2752. ]For that read yet?

[2755, 6. ]Th. sete, ete; G. sett, ete.

[2760. ]Both yeue.

[2763. ]I supply his. Th. trust; G. trist.

[2774. ]Both aftirward.

[2775. ]I supply to.

[2777. ]Both yeue.

[2786. ]Both endure.

[2789, 90. ]Th. solace, lace. G. Doith.

[2791. ]Both first.

[2796. ]G. Thenkyng; Th. Thynkyng; see 2804.

[2798. ]Both and in peyne.

[2801. ]Both ins. to bef. have.

[2824. ]Both not ben; F. tu seroies.

[2831. ]Both myght.

[2833. ]Both me (for hem); see 2845.

[2845. ]I supply my; see 2833.

[2846. ]G. sittith; Th. sytteth.

[2854. ]Th. him; G. hem. Th. apayde; G. apaied; see l. 2891.

[2895. ]G. and of; Th. om. of.

[2897. ]G. which.

[2912. ]I supply yit.

[2916. ]I supply it. Th. conuoye G. conueye.

[2917. ]they] Both thou.

[2921, 2. ]Both sene, clene; supply he.

[2934. ]I supply that.

[2935. ]Both declared thee.

[2946. ]Th. sufferaunce; G. suffraunce.

[2950. ]Both yeue.

[2954. ]Th. vanysshed; G. vanyshide.

[2960, 2973. ]Both bothom; read botoun.

[2970. ]G. bisiede; Th. besyed.

[2971. ]Th. haye; G. hay.

[2981. ]Th. gladde; G. glad.

[2984. ]F. Bel-Acueil.

[2987. ]G. outter; Th. vtter.

[2990. ]Th. fresshe; G. fresh.

[2992. ]Both warrans; I supply I be; F. Ge vous i puis bien garantir.

[3000. ]Th. hertely; G. hertly.

[3001. ]I supply I.

[3009, 3013. ]Both bothom; read botoun.

[3010. ]Th. fresshe; G. fresh. Th. spronge; G. sprange.

[3012. ]Both myght.

[3020. ]Th. grasse; G. gras.

[3029. ]I insert no.

[3035. ]Both Brought; I supply On lyve (i. e. to life). Th. ylke; G. ilk.

[3038. ]Th. so vgly; G. so oughlye; om. so.

[3045. ]Both bothoms; read botouns. Th. las; G. lasse.

[3046. ]Th. sondrie; G. sondre.

[3047. ]Th. wyste; G. wist.

[3050, 3064. ]Both Bothoms.

[3052. ]Both Venus hath flemed.

[3058. ]G. om. is.

[3071, 6, 8. ]Both bothom.

[3079. ]I supply me; F. me fis.

[3083. ]G. waxe; Th. wext.

[3109. ]Both bothom.

[3115. ]Both arise; read ryse.

[3125. ]Both And late (lette) it growe.

[3127, 8. ]Both were, bere.

[3136. ]G. om. Th. His eyes reed sparclyng as the fyre-glowe (too long); F. S’ot les yex rouges comme feus. 3037. Both kirked.

[3150. ]I] G. it; Th. he; F. ge.

[3154. ]Th. agayne; G. ageyns.

[3164. ]Th. he; G. it.

[3179. ]I supply wot.

[3186. ]Th. brast; G. barste.

[3188. ]G. That was; Th. m. That. Th. through; G. thurgh.

[3191. ]Th. highe; G. high.

[3195. ]Both without.

[3201. ]on] G. in (!).

[3207. ]Both For nature; I omit For.

[3209. ]Both but if the.

[3213. ]Th. seignorie; G. seignurie.

[3219, 20. ]G. freende, sheende; Th. frende, shende.

[3221. ]Th. the; G. ye.

[3227. ]G. didest (!).

[3228. ]Th. had; G. hadde; read haddest.

[3230. ]I supply ward.

[3231, 2. ]Both wene, sene; I supply thee.

[3248. ]G. om. nat.

[3251. ]Th. werrey; G. werye.

[3264. ]Both seyne; feyne seems better.

[3266. ]I supply it.

[3274. ]Both he be a; I omit a.

[3279. ]G. om. of.

[3282. ]Th. moche; G. mych.

[3292. ]G. arrage (!).

[3301. ]After gete, Th. ins. the, and G. thee.

[3315. ]Th. counsayle; G. counsele.

[3320. ]Both thought; read taughte.

[3331. ]Both Who that; I omit that.

[3337. ]Both cherisaunce; F. chevissance.

[3340. ]Both myght.

[3344. ]Both fast.

[3350. ]Both witholde.

[3355. ]Th. whiche; G. which.

[3356. ]G. om. have. Th. meymed.

[3364. ]Th. fresshe; G. fresh. Both bothom.

[3372. ]Th. fiers.

[3379. ]Th. meke; G. make.

[3385. ]I supply him.

[3399. ]Th. forbode; G. fobede; read forbad.

[3406. ]I supply sir.

[3408. ]Both amenden.

[3414. ]G. om. I.

[3418. ]G. you shulde.

[3429. ]G. doon elles welle; Th. done al wel, F. Toutes vos autres volentes Ferai.

[3433. ]Th. suche; G. sichen; F. puisqu’il me siet.

[3447. ]Both where that the; I omit that.

[3448. ]I supply thou; F. tu.

[3454. ]Th. tale; G. talle.

[3455. ]Th. affayre; G. affere.

[3462. ]Both good mes (sic); F. en bon point; see l. 1453.

[3464. ]Both -come.

[3468. ]G. om. me.

[3473. ]Both bothom.

[3482. ]Morris supplies hard.

[3490. ]Both That he had.

[3491. ]G. Thanne; Th. Than; read That; F. Qu’Amors.

[3498. ]G. Thou; Th. Tho. Both and me (for and).

[3502. ]Both bothom.

[3508. ]I supply word.

[3510. ]Th. moche; G. mych.

[3522. ]Both ye (for he); F. Que il.

[3525. ]Both it is.

[3534. ]G. to beye; Th. to bey.

[3548. ]Both This; F. C’est; This = This is.

[3552. ]Th. he; G. ye.

[3554. ]Both Vpon (for On).

[3560. ]Read mis (for amis).

[3563. ]Th. moste; G. most.

[3590. ]G. lette; Th. let.

[3591. ]Th. hye; G. high.

[3599, 3600. ]Th. please, ease.

[3604. ]Th. dare (for thar), wrongly. Th. aferde.

[3615. ]Th. without.

[3619. ]Th. hadde.

[3620. ]Th. leaue.

[3622. ]Th. hel.

[3626. ]Th. eftres.

[3633. ]Th. spaunysshinge.

[3641. ]Th. without.

[3642. ]Th. sene.

[3643. ]Th. the god of blesse; F. Diex la beneie.

[3646. ]Th. marueyle.

[3656. ]Th. leysar.

[3660. ]Th. That so swetely.

[3663. ]Th. cosse.

[3667. ]Th. sayd.

[3670, 1. ]Th. dare.

[3674. ]Th. ywisse.

[3676. ]Th. lyfe; read live.

[3679. ]Th. best.

[3687. ]Th. first.

[3688. ]Th. fel downe.

[3690. ]Th. grapes be ripe; om. be.

[3694. ]Both Though.

[3697. ]Both rennyng (for rewing).

[3698. ]Both come (absurdly); see l. 3700; read to me.

[3699. ]Th. werryeth; G. werieth; F. guerroie.

[3707. ]Th. flame.

[3709. ]Both hette.

[3710. ]G. herte is; Th. hert is; read hertis = hertes. Both sette.

[3716. ]G. nelle; Th. nyl.

[3718. ]Both neithir (for nor).

[3723. ]G. pruyde.

[3730. ]Th. warne; G. worne.

[3742. ]G. outterly; Th. vtterly.

[3745. ]Both pleyne (playne).

[3746. ]Both -nysse.

[3748. ]G. thenkith.

[3749. ]Th. warne; G. worne.

[3751. ]Both ye helpe; read to helpe.

[3755. ]Th. with his hete.

[3756. ]Both ins. me after bad.

[3757. ]G. Grauntede; Th. Graunt.

[3761. ]Thar] Th. There nede.

[3763. ]Both Stroke.

[3774. ]G. it wille; Th. at wyl.

[3779. ]Th. selde; G. yelde.

[3790. ]G. strong; Th. stronge.

[3803, 3811. ]Both bare.

[3805. ]G. gret; Th. great.

[3807. ]Both myght.

[3808. ]G. report.

[3812. ]Both square.

[3832. ]Th. regarde.

[3834. ]Th. thus; G. this.

[3845. ]I supply not.

[3846. ]I supply to.

[3848. ]G. thenkith.

[3852. ]I supply Ne. Both verge; see 3234. G. hadde; Th. had.

[3862. ]Th. wende; G. wente.

[3877. ]Both first.

[3880. ]G. fals. Both lye.

[3885. ]G. such.

[3889. ]G. vylonye.

[3891. ]M. supplies for.

[3895. ]Both trechours.

[3897. ]I supply wel.

[3902. ]Both herte I crye.

[3907. ]Both lowe.

[3912. ]G. yhe; Th. eye.

[3915. ]I supply yit.

[3917. ]Th. werreyed; G. werried.

[3928. ]Th. Counsayle. Both must; read mot, and supply take.

[3942. ]Both Do; read To. Both fortresse; F. forteresce.

[3943. ]Both Thanne (Than) close; F. Qui les Roses clorra entor.

[3954. ]Th. blende; G. blynde.

[3955. ]I supply for.

[3967. ]I supply Til. Both last.

[3971. ]Both ferre.

[3973. ]I supply so.

[3974. ]I supply do.

[3977. ]Th. haue.

[3979. ]Both shamed.

[3982. ]G. withoute; Th. without.

[3985, 6. ]G. om. he.

[3994. ]Th. vilanously; G. vilaynesly.

[4000. ]Both right. I supply bothe a-.

[4009, 4016. ]G. doist.

[4011. ]Both bothoms.

[4015. ]Both Stoute, porte.

[4021. ]G. an high; Th. an hye; read in hy.

[4026. ]Both To make.

[4036. ]Both sittith (-eth).

[4044. ]I supply not.

[4059. ]Th. sothe; G. sooth. G. knowe.

[4063. ]as] G. a.

[4065. ]G. om. he.

[4072. ]G. gardyne.

[4073. ]a-fere, i. e. on fire.

[4089. ]Both put it after I.

[4096. ]Both me (for men).

[4098. ]Both myght.

[4110. ]Th. quake; G. quoke.

[4111. ]Both bothom. I supply that.

[4114. ]Th. moche; G. mych.

[4120. ]Th. fresshe; G. fresh.

[4158. ]G. Aboute; Th. About.

[4159. ]G. fademe.

[4175. ]M. supplies ne.

[4177. ]Supply For (F. Car). Both temprure.

[4181. ]Both of; read as.

[4188. ]Both Roses; read Rosers; F. rosiers.

[4191. ]G. and bows; Th. bowes and.

[4194. ]whiche] Both who.

[4207. ]I supply eek.

[4208. ]G. om. kepte.

[4220. ]Th. lefte; G. lyft.

[4222. ]M. supplies hir.

[4142. ]Th. Ofter; G. Ofte.

[4246. ]G. wole.

[4254. ]M. supplies ne.

[4264. ]Th. eye; G. ighe.

[4269. ]Th. deserte; G. disseit.

[4272. ]Both walketh (!).

[4283. ]Both lyue.

[4285. ]Both Which (for Ther); giving no sense.

[4288. ]Th. whiche; G. which.

[4289. ]I supply muche.

[4291. ]Both except.

[4293. ]I supply loveres.

[4294. ]I supply the.

[4308. ]Both bothoms.

[4314. ]G. om. of.

[4322. ]Both wente aboute (a = have).

[4337. ]Both make.

[4339. ]G. tiliers; Th. tyllers.

[4344. ]Th. nyl; G. nel.

[4352. ]Both wente; aboven to haue.

[4355. ]Th. folke; G. folk.

[4356. ]G. glowmbe; Th. glombe.

[4357. ]M. supplies thou.

[4358. ]I supply in. Th. tourneth; G. tourne.

[4361. ]Th. areyse; G. arise.

[4363. ]Th. hyest. Both but; read al. Both lust.

[4364. ]Both trust.

[4365. ]am] Both is.

[4366. ]Both charge.

[4372. ]wal] G. wole; Th. wol.

[4394. ]Both maist.

[4401. ]I supply is.

[4403. ]Both ought.

[4404. ]I supply ther.

[4407. ]I supply man.

[4413. ]Both Owe.

[4414. ]Th. false; G. fals.

[4425. ]Both good.

[4432. ]Both falle.

[606. ]F. sorwynge.

[607. ]Tn. sekenes; F. sekeenesse (sic).

[609. ]Tn. liȝt; F. lyghte; Th. syght.

[610. ]Tn. wit; F. wytte. Th. Tn. nyght; F. nyghte.

[611. ]All slepe. Tn. waking; F. wakynge.

[612. ]Tn. fasting; F. fastynge.

[614. ]Tn. abaved (sic); Th. F. abawed. All where so.

[617. ]Tn. boldnes; Th. F. boldenesse. (Perhaps read y-turned.)

[618. ]F. pleyde; Th. played; Tn. pleied.

[619. ]F. Atte the (wrongly); Th. Tn. At the. Tn. ches; Th. F. chesse.

[621. ]Tn. halt; F. Th. halte (!).

[622. ]Tn. goth; Th. gothe; F. gethe (!). Th. halte; Tn. is halt; F. is halte.

[627. ]Th. wrien; rest varien (!).

[628. ]Th. Tn. monstres; F. Mowstres. Th. heed; F. Tn. hed.

[629. ]B. filth; rest fylthe. Th. Tn. ystrowed.

[630. ]F. worshippe. Th. Tn. floures; F. B. flourys; read flour is.

[632. ]Tn. feith; F. feythe.

[633. ]F. lawghynge.

[634. ]Tn. oon; Th. F. one. Th. eye; Tn. eiȝ; F. yghe; B. ye. F. wepynge.

[635. ]Th. set; F. sette.

[637. ]F. flateyrynge; Tn. flateryng.

[639. ]Th. Tn. amyd; F. amydde.

[640. ]Th. he; F. hyt; Tn. it.

[642. ]F. thenvyouse; Tn. thenvious; Th. the enuyous.

[644. ]Th. false; F. Tn. fals.

[645. ]F. no thynge.

[647. ]Th. Ful; rest For. F. thus she; Tn. Th. she thus.

[649. ]Th. nat; F. Tn. not.

[650. ]Th. false; F. Tn. fals. Th. F. thefe; Tn. knaue.

[651. ]F. oure lorde; the sey.

[652. ]All At the; Atte is better. Tn. ches; Th. F. chesse. F. pley.

[653. ]Th. Tn. false; F. fals.

[654. ]F. staale; toke. F. Tn. fers; Th. feers.

[655. ]F. sawgh. B. a-waye; rest away.

[656. ]B. pleye; Th. F. play; Tn. pley.

[657. ]All farewel (farewell); and in l. 658.

[660. ]All insert the after in (badly).

[661. ]F. povne; Tn. poun; Th. paune. Tn. erraunt; F. errante.

[663. ]Tn. Athalaus.

[664. ]Tn. ches; Th. F. chesse.

[667. ]Tn. Grek; F. Greke. Th. Pithagores; F. Tn. Pictagoras.

[668. ]Tn. pleyd; F. pleyde.

[670. ]Tn. though; Th. thoughe; F. thought (sic). F. trewly.

[671. ]F. holde; wysshe.

[675. ]All eke. B. las; F. lasse; Tn. lesse.

[676. ]F. -selfe.

[677. ]Th. had I ben; F. as I be (wrongly).

[678. ]F. oght.

[681. ]All she my fers; read my fers she (Koch). All kaught, read caughte; and draughte in ll. 682, 685.

[683. ]Tn. wis; F. wys.

[684. ]Th. she; F. Tn. B. he. F. tooke.

[685. ]F. through; draught; lorne.

[686. ]F. borne.

[689. ]F. doone.

[690. ]F. Be oure lorde; soone.

[691. ]F. -thynge. I supply ne.

[693. ]All For there (ther); but omit For.

[694. ]F. ayre.

[695. ]F. yifte.

[696. ]F. wepynge.

[699. ]Tn. lyth; F. lyeth. F. rekenynge.

[700. ]Th. Tn. In; F. Inne.

[701. ]F. levyth noe.

[702. ]B. Tn. glade; F. glad; read gladde.

[703. ]Th. lost; F. loste.

[710. ]Tn. telle; F. tel.

[711. ]Th. Tn. Thus; F. This.

[712. ]F. myght; duelle.

[713. ]Tn. dide, herte; F. dyd, hert.

[714. ]Th. good; F. goode.

[715. ]Tn. som; F. somme.

[721. ]All insert yis (or yes) before parde; which spoils both sense and metre.

[722. ]Th. say; rest om. F. trewly.

[723. ]Th. lost; F. loste.

[726. ]Th. good; F. goode.

[727. ]Tn. slowe; F. slowgh.

[728. ]All also; read als.

[729. ]F. Henge.

[732. ]All the quene; omit the. All eke.

[733. ]Tn. slow; F. slough. F. selfe.

[734. ]I supply former a. F. foole.

[735. ]All Ecquo.

[739. ]Tn. slow; F. slough. F. hym-selfe.

[740. ]All no man; but read noon.

[741. ]Perhaps read maken.

[743. ]F. woste; menyst.

[744. ]Th. lost; F. loste. F. thow wenyst.

[745. ]F. Tn. Loo she that may be; Th. Howe that may be; here she is an error for sir, and Howe that may be for how may that be; (ed. 1550 has Howe may that be).

[746. ]All sir. F. Tn. telle; Th. tel. F. hooly.

[749. ]F. come. Tn. sit; F. sytte.

[750. ]F. inserts hyt after telle; which Th. Tn. omit. Th. Tn. vpon a; F. vp a; but vp is right.

[751. ]All ins. shalt after thou; omit it (Koch). F. hooly. Tn. wit; Th. wyt; F. wytte.

[752. ]Tn. hit; F. hitte (!).

[754. ]F. Tn. here lo; Th. here to. Accent thér- and hér-.

[755. ]Perhaps right should be omitted.

[756. ]F. Hooly.

[758. ]B. half; F. halfe; (goddes = god’s).

[760. ]Tn. wit; F. wytte.

[761. ]F. vnderstondynge.

[763. ]Tn. wit; F. wytte.

[764. ]Tn. yit; F. yitte.

[765. ]Tn. youen; F. yive.

[766. ]F. hooly.

[767, 768. ]Th. thral, al; F. thralle, alle. Th. wyl; F. wille.

[771. ]All deuoutely. All insert I before prayde. Th. prayde; F. prayed.

[772. ]Th. Tn. herte; F. hert.

[773. ]F. plesance; see l. 767.

[774. ]F. worshippe.

[775, 6. ]All yere, owhere.

[778. ]Tn. cam; F. came.

[779. ]F. Perauenture; see l. 788. All insert moste before able.

[780. ]F. white walle.

[781. ]F. cachche.

[783. ]F. Tn. Whethir; Th. Whether; read Wher (contracted form). F. portrey or peynt; Tn. purtrey or paynte.

[784. ]Tn. queynte; F. queynt.

[785. ]All insert ryght before so.

[787. ]Th. Tn. conde (for coude); F. kende (for kenned).

[788. ]All arte.

[789. ]Tn. kam; F. came.

[790. ]All forgate.

[791. ]Th. chees; Tn. chese; F. ches. Tn. fyrste; F. first. All crafte (but it will not rime).

[792. ]All lafte (wrongly); read y-laft.

[793. ]All For-why; read For? All toke. All yonge.

[795. ]F. no thynge.

[796. ]F. Thorgh. Tn. knowlechynge; F. knowlachynge.

[799. ]Tn. firste; F. first.

[800. ]F. goode; Th. good.

[801. ]F. Tn. flyttynge.

[802. ]All ins. That tyme (see l. 797) bef. And. Tn. thoughten; rest thoght. F. Tn. varyinge.

[804. ]F. knewe; stoode.

[805. ]F. came. Perhaps on (or a) should be omitted.

[806. ]All ther that I; om. that.

[808. ]F. euere. F. Tn. ye; Th. eye.

[810. ]Tn. hap; F. happe.

[811. ]F. broght; Tn. broghte. All there.

[813. ]Tn. false; F. fals.

[816. ]Tn. telle; F. tel.

[817. ]F. Amonge these.

[818. ]I supply ther.

[819. ]All lyke (like). I supply al.

[821. ]Tn. bryght; F. bryghte.

[822. ]Th. lyght; F. lyghte.

[823. ]All any other planete in; see note. F. hevene.

[824. ]F. sevene.

[826. ]Th. Tn. Surmounted; F. Surmountede. Tn. B. alle; F. al.

[828. ]All ins. of after and. F. ins. so before wel; which Th. Tn. omit. Th. Tn. set; F. sette.

[829. ]Th. goodlyhede; F. godelyhede. All ins. and before so, probably caught from the line above. B. beseye; rest besey.

[830. ]Th. supplies more; F. Tn. omit. All sey.

[831. ]Th. Tn. his; F. omits.

[832. ]Tn. as; Th. F. al.

[833. ]Th. stedfast; F. stedfaste.

[835. ]F. Tn. had wel herd; om. wel.

[838. ]F. y-kaught; Th. I cought; Tn. I caughte.

[839. ]All toke.

[840. ]All counseyl; I propose reed. All loke.

[841. ]Th. And; F. Tn. But (caught from l. 840). Th. Tn. herte; F. hest (wrongly). All for why; read for?

[842. ]F. hert; Th. Tn. herte.

[843. ]F. ovne; read owne.

[844. ]F. beter; Th. better; Tn. bettyr; read bet.

[846. ]Tn. B. soth; F. Th. sothe.

[848. ]Tn. saw; F. sawgh. F. comelely; Th. comely; Tn. comly.

[850. ]F. Lawghe; pley.

[852. ]Th. goodly; F. goodely.

[854. ]Tn. seyn; F. seyne.

[855. ]All on; read upon.

[856. ]Tn. seyn; F. seyne. (For was probably read nas.)

[857. ]F. yelowe; broune.

[858. ]F. Tn. thoght. Th. F. lyke; Tn. likely. Th. golde; which F. Tn. absurdly omit.

[861. ]F. goode.

[862. ]F. looke.

[863. ]F. ouertwert; Tn. onyrthwerte; Th. ouertwhart (sic). Th. beset; Tn. biset; F. besette.

[864. ]F. Tn. drewh. F. tooke. All euerydele.

[865. ]Tn. B. Alle; F. Th. Al.

[867. ]F. foolys; B. folys.

[869. ]F. thynge.

[870. ]F. lokynge.

[873. ]Th. close; Tn. clos; F. cloos.

[874. ]F. lokynge. Th. folyche.

[876. ]Tn. thoghte; F. thoght.

[877. ]Th. By; F. Tn. Be.

[882. ]Th. trowe; F. Tn. trow.

[883. ]Th. herte; Tn. hyrte; F. hert.

[884. ]All sate. B. lyte; Tn. lite; F. litel. Th. Tn. herte; F. hert.

[885. ]Tn. knew; F. knowe (sic). F. no thynge.

[886. ]This line is in Th. only; Th. has knewe (twice).

[887. ]Tn. roghte; Th. F. rought.

[888. ]Tn. ner; F. nerre. F. was; Th. Tn. nas.

[889. ]Th. than; Tn. then; F. that.

[891. ]Tn. gode; Th. F. good. All folke.

[893. ]F. wounder.

[894. ]F. placis.

[895. ]All But which; omit But.

[898. ]Th. bothe; F. both.

[900. ]All eke. B. spyritz; F. spiritis.

[901. ]All grete a thynge.

[902. ]Th. wyt; Tn. F. witte.

[903. ]Th. F. comprehende; Tn. comprehend; read comprehenden.

[904. ]Tn. seyn; F. sayn.

[905. ]All insert white after Was, which spoils metre and story (see l. 948). F. fressh.

[908. ]Th. Tn. certes; F. certys.

[909. ]All faire or fayre.

[910, 911. ]B. chief; rest chefe. Th. Tn. patron; F. patrone.

[913. ]F. thynkyth.

[914. ]Tn. B. alle; Th. F. al (it is plural).

[916. ]I supply They; Th. Ne wolde haue; Tn. Ne sholde haue; F. Ne sholde ha. The right reading is They ne sholde have (They ne being read as They n’).

[919. ]Th. goodly; F. goodely.

[921. ]Th. frendly; F. frendely.

[922. ]F. B. Vp; Th. Tn. Vpon; see l. 750.

[923. ]Tn. B. alle; F. al. Tn. gode; F. goode.

[924. ]After swere all insert wel (needlessly). Tn. rode; F. roode.

[929. ]Th. Tn. pope; F. Pape.

[930. ]All ins. yet after never. Th. through; F. throgh.

[931. ]F. gretely.

[932. ]Th. Tn. her; F. hit (sic). I supply ther (cf. l. 930); perhaps omitted, because her also ended in her. All harme.

[933. ]F. flaterynge; word.

[937. ]All dele.

[938. ]All worlde; wele.

[939. ]All fairenesse (fayrenes).

[941. ]Th. Tn. B. sene; F. seen. Th. F. myssatte; Tn. missate.

[942. ]All badly insert pure (dissyllabic) before flat; but smothe has two syllables. Tn. flat; Th. F. flatte.

[943. ]All or; I read and.

[944. ]Th. by; rest be.

[946. ]All rounde. Th. tour; F. Tn. toure.

[947. ]Th. good; F. goode. F. gretenesse; grete.

[948. ]B. het; rest hete.

[949. ]Th. right; F. ryghte.

[950. ]All faire. Th. bright; F. bryghte.

[951. ]All had (but it is emphatic). All wronge.

[952. ]All longe.

[953. ]All had.

[954. ]Th. great; F. Tn. grete.

[957. ]Tn. bak; F. bakke.

[958. ]B. knyw; rest knewe. All noon other; perhaps read no maner. Tn. lak; F. lakke.

[959. ]All insert pure (dissyllabic) after nere; but limmes is dissyllabic.

[960. ]Tn. fer; F. ferre. F. knowynge.

[961. ]Th. playe; F. pley.

[962. ]Tn. liste; F. list. Th. saye; F. sey.

[963. ]All lyke.

[965. ]F. hathe.

[969. ]Tn. cacche; F. cachche. Th. Tn. if; F. yif (and in l. 970).

[971. ]All swere wel; read sweren (omitting the expletive wel).

[972. ]All thousande.

[973. ]F. lest.

[974. ]B. chieff; rest chefe. Th. Tn. myrrour; F. meroure. Th. Tn. feste; F. fest.

[975. ]Th. F. stonde; read stonden.

[976. ]Th. that; which Tn. F. omit.

[977. ]Tn. B. pleyd; F. pleyed.

[978. ]F. thoght. Th. felaushyp; Tn. feliship; F. felysshyppe.

[979. ]Tn. saw; F. sawgh.

[981. ]Th. F. Trewly; Tn. Truly. B. ye; Th. F. eye (note the rime).

[982. ]Th. Tn. soleyn; F. soleyne.

[983. ]Th. lyueth; F. levyth.

[984. ]Tn. knew; rest knowe.

[985. ]Th. goodnesse; F. godenesse.

[988. ]Th. Tn. if; F. yif.

[989. ]Tn. F. seyn; Th. sayne. F. alle.

[990. ]Tn. wit; F. wytte. Th. general; F. generalle.

[991. ]F. hoole.

[992. ]All wytte.

[994. ]All And thereto; but And is needless. F. sawgh.

[995. ]Th. Harmful; F. Harmeful.

[996. ]For ne had perhaps read nad.

[997. ]I transpose; all have What harme was (but harm is monosyllabic, and the line is then bad).

[998. ]Tn. F. coude. Th. thynketh; F. thenketh.

[1000. ]F. had hadde hyt hadde.

[1001. ]All dele.

[1002. ]All wele.

[1003. ]F. al and alle.

[1004. ]Th. principal; F. principalle.

[1007. ]F. stedefaste.

[1008. ]Th. Tn. B. attempre; F. atempry.

[1009. ]Tn. knew; F. knewe. Tn. yit; F. yitte.

[1010. ]Tn. wit; F. wytte.

[1011. ]F. vnderstoode.

[1012. ]F. goode.

[1016. ]All wronge.

[1019. ]Tn. luste; F. lust.

[1020. ]All wolde not; an error for nolde (Koch).

[1022. ]All halfe worde.

[1025. ]Th. F. pruyse; Tn. pruse; B. sprewse.

[1027. ]Th. bydde; F. bid.

[1028. ]Th. hoodlesse; F. hoodeles. All in-to; read to.

[1029. ]B. hom; rest home. Tn. Carrynare.

[1030. ]F. Tn. sey; Th. omits.

[1032. ]F. Worshyppe.

[1034. ]F. wherfore. Tn. telle; F. tel.

[1035. ]All seyde (sayde).

[1036. ]F. hooly. All leyde (layde).

[1037. ]All wyfe (wife).

[1038. ]All luste. All lyfe (life).

[1039. ]Tn. F. happe; Th. hope.

[1040. ]F. worldys. I substitute lisse for goddesse; see note.

[1041. ]F. hooly hires and; Th. Tn. holy hers and; B. hooly hyres.

[1042. ]F. oure.

[1043. ]Th. beset; F. besette; Tn. yset.

[1044. ]F. myght haue doo bette.

[1045. ]Th. Tn. Bet; F. Bette. F. wele.

[1046. ]F. hit wel sir; Th. Tn. om. hit wel.

[1047. ]F. sire.

[1048. ]All trewly.

[1049. ]Th. Tn. beste; F. best.

[1050. ]Tn. fayreste; F. fayrest.

[1051. ]All ins. her after loked.

[1052. ]Tn. B. alle; F. al.

[1053. ]All swore; read sworen.

[1054. ]Perhaps read nadde.

[1056. ]F. had hadde (better hadde had).

[1057. ]All Alcipyades.

[1060. ]Th. Tn. Alisaundre; F. Alisaunder. ? omit al or the.

[1064. ]Th. therto; F. Tn. to (see 1059). Th. Tn. al so; F. also as.

[1066. ]Tn. slow; F. slough.

[1067. ]Tn. therfor; F. ther fore.

[1069. ]Tn. slayn; F. slayne. Th. Tn. Antilegius; F. Antylegyus.

[1071. ]I supply hir.

[1074. ]Tn. moste; F. most.

[1075. ]All insert trewly after nay; we must omit it.

[1075, 6. ]F. nowe, howe.

[1077. ]Th. good; F. goode. F. hert.

[1078. ]All eke.

[1081. ]All ins. was after ever. Th. Penelope; F. Penelopee; Tn. penelapie; read Pénelóp’).

[1082. ]All wyfe (wife).

[1083. ]Th. beste; F. best.

[1084. ]Tn. romayn; F. Romayne.

[1088. ]All wherfore.

[1089. ]F. firste. Th. sey; F. say.

[1090. ]All yonge. I supply the.

[1091. ]F. grete nede.

[1093. ]F. grete.

[1094. ]All wytte. Tn. best; F. beste.

[1095. ]All yonge. F. childely wytte.

[1097. ]B. beste; rest best.

[1098. ]F. worshippe. Th. F. insert the before servyse; but Tn. omits.

[1099. ]All coude tho; read tho coude. Tn. by; F. be.

[1100. ]F. Feynynge.

[1101. ]Tn. fayn; F. feyne.

[1103. ]Tn. saw; F. sawgh.

[1104. ]Th. warysshed; F. Tn. warshed.

[1106. ]F. thoght.

[1108. ]Tn. sit; Th. syt; F. sytte. Th. Tn. in; F. om.

[1110. ]Th. out; Tn. F. oute.

[1111. ]All trewly.

[1114. ]All shrifte (shryfte).

[1117. ]Tn. certes; F. certis.

[1118. ]Tn. Achitofell; F. Achetofel.

[1120. ]Tn. traytour; F. traytore. Tn. F. B. betraysed; Th. betrayed.

[1121. ]Th. false; F. fals. All Genellon.

[1123. ]Tn. rowland; F. Rowlande.

[1124. ]All while (whyle).

[1126. ]F. good; Tn. gode. I supply right.

[1127. ]All tolde. B. her-; F. here-.

[1128. ]All nede. F. Th. Tn. insert to after need; B. omits it. Tn. hit; Th. it; F. om.

[1129. ]Tn. sawe; F. sawgh. Th. first; F. firste.

[1130. ]Tn. telle; F. tel.

[1131. ]Tn. her; F. hire. B. firste; rest first.

[1133. ]All knewe (subjunctive).

[1135. ]All eke.

[1136. ]Tn. her-; F. here-.

[1137. ]Tn. seyde he; F. he seyde. F. menyst.

[1138. ]F. wenyst.

[1139. ]Tn. los; F. losse. I supply sir.

[1141. ]F. doon; Tn. Th. done (read y-doon).

[1142. ]F. hathe lefte.

[1143. ]Th. tel; F. telle. Th. al; F. alle.

[1144. ]Th. shal; F. shalle.

[1145. ]All say. Tn. seyd; F. seyde.

[1146. ]Tn. leyd; F. leyde.

[1147. ]All needlessly insert not (or nat) after hit.

[1150. ]F. tel.

[1153. ]Tn. herte; F. hert.

[1154. ]Th. asterte; F. astert.

[1155. ]Omit But for? F. ins. so before fro; Tn. Th. omit.

[1158. ]All songe.

[1159. ]F. Th. Tn. ins. this (B. thus) before a. F. grete dele.

[1160. ]All wele.

[1161. ]Th. Tn. ne; B. to; F. the (!). F. knowe (infin.); Tn. know; Th. knewe (wrongly). All the arte; perhaps read that art.

[1162. ]Th. Lamekes; F. lamekys. Th. Tubal; F. Tuballe; Tn. B. Tuballe.

[1163. ]B. fonde; rest founde. Th. first; F. firste. All songe.

[1164. ]Tn. brothers; F. brothres.

[1165. ]Th. anuelt; Tn. anuelte; F. Anuelet. Tn. doun; F. doon.

[1166. ]F. tooke. B. fyrste; rest first. Tn. soune; F. soon.

[1167. ]Th. of Pithagoras.

[1168. ]Tn. fyrste; F. first.

[1169. ]All arte.

[1171. ]F. Algatis.

[1172. ]F. felynge; hert.

[1173. ]Th. this; F. Tn. thus. I supply the. Tn. firste; F. first.

[1174. ]Th. werst; Tn. F. repeat first. I supply that.

[1175. ]All Lorde. Tn. herte; F. hert.

[1178. ]All myght (might).

[1180. ]All faire (fayre).

[1181. ]All tolde. Tn. soth; F. sothe. All say.

[1182. ]Tn. firste; F. first. All songe; all day.

[1183. ]Tn. bethoghte; F. bethoght.

[1185. ]F. wyst.

[1186. ]Tn. telle; F. tel. All durst.

[1187. ]Tn. thoghte; F. thoght. F. rede.

[1188. ]All am; grammar requires nam. F. dede.

[1189. ]Tn. if; F. yif. All sey (say), after which ryght is needlessly inserted; I omit it. Tn. soth; F. sothe.

[1190. ]Tn. wroth; F. wrothe.

[1192. ]All debate.

[1193. ]Tn. thoghte; F. thoght. F. brast; Th. Tn. braste (subj.). Tn. a tweyn; F. a tweyne.

[1194. ]All at the; read atte. Tn. seyn; F. sayne.

[1195. ]All bethoght (bethought) me

[1197. ]All trewly or truly.

[1198. ]F. wyth oute; read withouten.

[1201. ]F. nedys; Mawgree. Th. heed; F. hede.

[1202. ]Tn. moste; F. most. All tolde. Th. deed; F. dede.

[1203. ]Th. began; F. beganne (!).

[1204. ]All reherse or reherce; but read rehersen.

[1205, 6. ]All eke. Th. -al, dismal; F. Tn. -alle, dismalle.

[1208. ]All worde.

[1210. ]F. wordys. Tn. mysset; F. mys sette.

[1212. ]F. quakynge.

[1213. ]F. styntynge.

[1215. ]Tn. wex; F. wexe. Th. reed; F. rede.

[1216. ]F. Bowynge. Th. heed; F. hede.

[1218. ]Tn. wit; F. witte. All maner.

[1220. ]All sate (!).

[1221. ]All at the; read atte. Tn. soth; F. sothe. Tn. seyn; F. seyne.

[1222. ]Tn. herte; F. hert. Tn. agayn; F. ageyne.

[1223. ]Th. shortly; F. shortely. Th. al; Tn. B. alle; F. at (!).

[1226. ]All swore (!).

[1228. ]F. fresshly.

[1230. ]F. worshippe.

[1231. ]All swore or swere (!).

[1232. ]Th. al; F. alle.

[1234. ]All ins. to before false.

[1235. ]Tn. wisse; F. wysse; B. wys.

[1237. ]All wote (!).

[1238. ]Tn. thoghte; F. thoght.

[1239. ]All ins. ryght before as.

[1242. ]F. wordys.

[1244. ]Th. Al; F. Alle.

[1248. ]Th. Troye; F. Troy.

[1250. ]Tn. durste; F. durst.

[1251. ]F. stale.

[1253. ]All trewly. All nede.

[1254. ]All hede.

[1256. ]All fonde or founde.

[1261. ]F. vnderstode.

[1262. ]Th. thyng; F. Tn. B. no thynge; but no is not required by idiom or metre. All goode, gode.

[1263. ]F. worshippe.

[1264. ]All al (or alle) thynges; but al thing is the right idiom. Th. drede; Tn. to drede; F. dred.

[1266. ]For And read That (Lange).

[1267. ]All harme.

[1268. ]Tn. knew; F. knewe.

[1269. ]F. hooly.

[1270. ]F. yifte.

[1271. ]F. Savynge hir worshippe.

[1273. ]All rynge (!).

[1274. ]Tn. firste; F. first. Th. thyng; F. thynge.

[1275. ]Tn. if; F. yif. Tn. herte; F. hert.

[1276. ]Tn. Glad; F. Gladde. All nede.

[1279. ]Tn. alle; F. al.

[1281. ]All trewly (treuly).

[1282. ]Th. Tn. B. the; which F. omits.

[1284. ]Th. debonairly; F. debonairely.

[1285. ]Tn. B. alle (first time); the rest al. B. alle (second time); rest al.

[1286. ]F. tooke.

[1289. ]F. Oure. Th. F. werne; Tn. weren. Th. euen; F. evene.

[1290. ]Th. Tn. contrayre; F. contrarye.

[1293. ]All eke.

[1294. ]All glad.

[1300. ]Tn. B. wex; F. waxe; Th. woxe. Th. deed; F. dede.

[1302. ]Tn. los; F. losse.

[1303. ]F. hadde; rest had. All lorne (!).

[1304. ]F. Bethenke. F. herebeforne.

[1305. ]F. menyst.

[1306. ]F. wenyst.

[1307. ]F. wote.

[1309. ]Th. deed; F. ded. Tn. bi; F. be.

[1310. ]F. youre. Tn. los; F. losse. Th. by; F. be.

[1312. ]Read rather They gonne forth straken (or striken).

[1313. ]Th. hart; F. Tn. herte (!).

[1314. ]F. thoght; kynge.

[1315. ]I supply quikly; the line is too short.

[1316. ]All insert was after place.

[1318. ]All longe. F. wallys.

[1319. ]Th. Tn. By; F. Be. Th. hyl; F. Tn. hille.

[1320. ]Th. fyl; F. Tn. fille (!).

[1322. ]F. castell. All ins. ther before was.

[1323. ]Th. smytte; F. Tn. smyte; read smiten (pp.). Th. houres; F. oures.

[1324. ]F. awooke.

[1325. ]All fonde or founde. F. lyinge. Tn. bed; F. bedde.

[1326. ]F. booke. Tn. had red; F. hadde redde.

[1327. ]Th. Alcyone; F. Alchione. F. kynge.

[1328. ]F. goddys of slepynge.

[1329. ]Tn. euyn; F. evene.

[1330. ]Tn. Thoghte; F. Thoght. Tn. sweuyn; F. sweuene.

[1331. ]Th. by; F. be.

[1332. ]All put. Tn. sweuyn; F. sweuene.

[1334. ]Tn. sweuyn; F. sweuene. Colophon;so in F. B.

[524. ]Cx. charge (for Iuge).

[527. ]Most MSS. insert the before foules; which Gg. Th. and Longleat MS. omit.

[530. ]All but Cx. Ff. ins. to after list.

[534. ]Trin. Th. preue; Gg. proue; F. preven.

[536. ]Gg. swich; F. suche.

[537. ]Gg. non by skillis; F. and rest by skilles may non (badly).

[540. ]Cx. terselis egles.

[543. ]Gg. ne; rest omit.

[544. ]F. om. gon.

[545. ]Gg. Cx. Oure; rest Oures, Ours.

[549. ]Gg. O. hath; rest had.

[551. ]Gg. sittyngest; rest sittynge.

[553. ]Cx. Harl. ethe (for light).

[556. ]Gg. O. gole; Ff. goler; Cx. golye; Ff. golee; Trin. Harl. wylle.

[558. ]Gg. facounde so; Ff. facounde; Cx. faconde; F. faucond.

[560. ]F. Cx. Ff. needlessly insert to after preyd-e.

[564. ]All but Gg. insert forth before bringe.

[569. ]For Quod read Seyde?

[570. ]Gg. sich (for swich); F. suche.

[575. ]F. laughtre.

[576. ]F. Harl. Ff. foules; Trin. fowle; Cx. fowl; O. foule; Gg. ful (!).

[577. ]Gg. gunne; Ff. gonne; rest gan.

[588. ]Harl. hires; Gg. hire; Cx. hers; rest hirs. Trin. Harl. om. that (perhaps rightly).

[589. ]Gg. Cx. Ff. doke; F. duk.

[590. ]F. Ff. shulden.

[592. ]F. Gg. murye; rest mery.

[594. ]Gg. O. yit; Ff. yet; rest om.

[599. ]Gg. by; F. be (1st time).

[602. ]Gg. Th. nat; F. neyther.

[603. ]F. put; Gg. putte.

[606. ]Cx. Ff. recche; F. Gg. Harl. reche; Trin. O. rek.

[611. ]Gg. Merlioun; Trin. O. Merlyon; Cx. merlion; F. Ff. Emerlyon.

[612. ]F. om. 1st the. Harl. heysugge; O. heysugg; Cx. heysug; Ff. haysugge; F. haysogge; Gg. heysoge; Trin. heysoke.

[613. ]Gg. reufulles (!); Pepys rowthfull; rest rewful (!).

[621. ]Gg. han; rest haue. Gg. Cx. the; rest hir, hyr.

[623. ]F. cheest; Gg. chesith; Trin. cheseth; Harl. chesithe. F. han hir; Gg. hire han; Trin. hyr hafe; Cx. Harl. Ff. her haue.

[626. ]Gg. hire this fauour; Trin. Harl. to hyr thys fauour; F. and rest thys fauour to hir.

[630. ]Ff. ye; Harl. yee; Trin. ey; rest eye.

[632. ]F. Gg. I (for hit). Gg. certis; rest omit.

[637. ]All but Gg. Cx. insert hit (or it) after That or yow. Th. ben; Cx. haue ben; rest to ben (be).

[641. ]Gg. As is a-nothir lyuis creature. O. alone ins. Like bef. As.

[642. ]Gg. mot; rest moste (muste).

[643. ]Gg. grauntyth; rest graunte, graunt (badly).

[644. ]Trin. Cx. Harl. I wyll yow; O. I woll ȝewe; F. Ff. yow wol I.

[652. ]F. Cipride; Harl. Cypride; Ff. Sypryde; rest Cupide (cf. ll. 212, 277).

[654. ]F. other weyes; Cx. other wayes; O. othir wey (perhaps best); Gg. othirwise; Ff. other-wyse; Trin. Harl. other (sic).

[655. ]Gg. Harl. tho; rest om.

[659. ]F. terceletys; Th. tercelets.

[660. ]F. al; Gg. alle.

[665. ]F. O. entremesse; Ff. entremeese; Th. entremes; Gg. entyrmes; Harl. entermes.

[666. ]F. wroght; rest brought, broght.

[669. ]F. A; Gg. But; rest And. Gg. Ioye; F. Ioy.

[672. ]Gg. Thankynge; F. Thonkyng. Gg. queen; rest goddesse, goddes.

[678. ]Gg. sweche (for swiche); F. suche. Th. Qui; miswritten Que in F. Cx.; Qe in Trin.; rest omit. aime; F. ayme. tard; F. tarde. Lines 680-692 only occur in Gg. Th. and Digby 181; lines 683, 684, 687-9 in O. I follow Digby 181 mainly.

[680. ]Digb. Nowe welcome.

[681. ]Gg. wintres wedres; Digb. wynter wedirs.

[682. ]Gg. And; Digb. Hast. Digb. drevyn; Gg. dreuyne. Digb. nyghtis; Gg. nyghtes.

[684. ]Digb. syngen; Fowlis.

[687. ]Gg. O. Wele.

[688. ]Gg. O. hem; Digb. them.

[689. ]Digb. Fulle blisfully they synge and endles ioy thei make (wrongly); Gg. Ful blisseful mowe they ben when they wake; O. Th. Ful blesfull may they synge when they wake (Th. awake).

[693. ]F. showtynge.

[694. ]Gg. madyn; Ff. maden; F. made.

[698. ]Trin. fynde (for mete).

[699. ]Ff. nyl; Gg. nele; F. O. wol; Trin. wylle; Cx. wil.

[1. ]koude; hert.

[2. ]turment.

[3 ]Thaughe; shoulde; youre.

[4. ]wissely.

[5. ]beaute liste.

[6. ]youre; bade; in-feere.

[7. ]beo.

[8. ]wissely.

[9. ]yowe sadde; truwe.

[10. ]lyff; gode.

[11. ]dethe; whane; reewe, altered by the scribe to newe.

[12. ]whome; suwe.

[13. ]hole; souffisaunce.

[14. ]sette.

[15. ]yowe; moste.

[16. ]Taccept; worthe; pore.

[17. ]not despice.

[18. ]eke; not.

[19. ]longe; suffre.

[20. ]here (error for dere; see XXII. 77).

[21. ]yowe; yere by yere.

[593.]

This is ‘the porter Ydlenesse’ of the Knightes Tale; A 1940.

[602.]

Alexandryn, of Alexandria; for of may well be omitted. It means that many trees have been imported from the east by way of Alexandria. Many MSS. of the Fr. text read ‘de la terre Alexandrins.’ The damson, for example, came from Damascus.

[603.]

I put be hider for hider be; but be, after all, is better omitted. Made hider fet is a correct idiom; see note to Cant. Ta. E 1098.

[610.]

The images and pictures on the outside of the wall were made repellent, to keep strangers aloof.

[624.]

oon, one; i. e. a place. intil Inde, as far as India.

[656.]

The rime is only a single one, in -ing.

[658.]

Alpes, bullfinches; also called an awp, or, corruptly, a nope. ‘Alp, or Nope, a bulfinch. I first took notice of this word in Suffolk, but find since that it is used in other counties, almost generally all over England’; Ray’s Collection of South and E. Country Words (1691).

wodewales, witwalls. In the Prompt. Parvulorum, the wodewale is identified with the wodehake, woodpecker; whilst Hexham explains Du. Weduwael as ‘a kinde of a yellow bird.’ There is often great confusion in such names. The true witwall is the Green Woodpecker (Gecinus viridis). We may omit and, and even were in l. 657.

[662.]

laverokkes, larks. The A. S. lāwerce, lāferce, became laverk; then the final k was exchanged for the diminutive suffix -ok.

[663.]

Chalaundres; see note to l. 81 above.

[664.]

wery, weary (F. lassees); nigh forsongen, nearly tired out with singing.

[665.]

thrustles, throstles, thrushes; see Parl. Foules, 364.

terins; F. tarin, which, Littré says, is the Fringilla spinus. Cotgrave has: ‘Tarin, a little singing bird, having a yellowish body, and an ash-coloured head’; by which (says Prof. Newton) he means the siskin, otherwise called the aberdevine.

mavys, mavises, song-thrushes. If we take the mavis to be the song-thrush, Turdus musicus, then the throstle may be distinguished as the missel-thrush, Turdus viscivorus. But the mavis is also called throstle. In Cambridge, the name is pronounced mavish (romic mei·vish).

[672.]

‘As spiritual angels do.’

[676.]

‘Of man liable to death’; by mortal man.

[684.]

sereyns, i. e. Sirens. Cotgrave has: ‘Sereine, f. a Mermaid.’ Chaucer takes no notice of G. de Lorris’ notable etymology, by which he derives Seraines from the adj. seri. Cotgrave gives (marked as obsolete): ‘Seri, m. ie, f. Quiet, mild, calm, still; fair, clear.’

[693.]

wel bigo, the opposite of ‘woe begone’; as in l. 580. Cf. ‘glad and wel begoon’; Parl. Foules, 171.

[700.]

leten, pp. of leten, to let; ‘and had let me in.’

[705.]

Morris reads Withoute, which improves the line:—‘Without-e fabl’ I wol descryve.’

[714.]

sete, sat; A. S. sǣton, pt. t. pl. (The correct form).

[716.]

Iargoning, chattering; cf. E. jargon.

[720.]

Read reverdye (see footnote). It means ‘rejoicing’; from the renewal of green things in spring.

[731.]

mentes, mints; Th. has myntes.

[735.]

‘Where he abode, to amuse himself.’

[744.]

carole, a dance; orig. a dance in a ring, accompanied with song. Hence, in l. 745, the verb carolen, to sing, in accompaniment to a dance of this character. In Rob. of Brunne’s Handlyng Synne, 9138, there is a description of a company carolling ‘hand in hand.’ And see below, ll. 759-765, 781; Book Duch. 849.

[746.]

I insert the (as Urry does) before blisful; cf. l. 797.

[749.]

The line—‘And couthe make in song swich refreininge’ is obviously too long. The word couthe is needlessly repeated from l. 747, and must be omitted. The Fr. text shews that refreininge means the singing of a refrain at the end of each verse.

[768.]

in this contree. This is an adaptation; the original Fr. says ‘in any country.’ Warton calmly observes: ‘there is not a syllable of these songs and singers of Lorraine in the French.’ But he consulted a defective copy.

[769.]timbestere, a female player on a timbrel. Tyrwhitt confuses the matter by quoting Lye, who mixed up this word with tombestere, a female tumbler; for which see Cant. Ta. C 477. They are quite unconnected, but are formed with the same fem. suffix, viz. that which appears also in the mod. E. spin-ster, and in the old words webb-estere, bak-estere, whence the surnames Webster, Baxter. In l. 772, timbres simply mean timbrels, and tambourine-players may still be performing the easy trick of throwing up a tambourine and catching it, spinning, on a finger-point. There is therefore no reason for explaining timbre as a basin. Nevertheless, such a mistake arose, and Junius quotes (s. v. Timbestere) some lines from an edition of Le Roman de la Rose, printed in 1529, in which the following lines here occur:—

• ‘Apres y eut farces joyeuses,
• Et batelleurs et batelleuses,
• Qui de passe passe jouoyent,
• Et en l’air ung bassin ruoyent,
• Puis le scavoyent bien recueillir
• Sur ung doy, sans point y faillir.’

It is tolerably certain that this is a corrupt form of the passage, and only makes the matter darker. All it proves is, that timbre was, by some, supposed to mean a basin! No doubt it had that sense (see Cotgrave), but not here.

Timbestere is a mere English form of the O. F. tymberesse, a player on a timbre. Diez, in his Dictionary, cites a passage from a commentary on the Psalms, given in Roquefort, Poés. franç. p. 127, to this effect:—‘li tymbres est uns estrumenz de musique qui est couverz d’un cuir sec de bestes’; i. e. it is the Lat. tympanum. So also, in Wright’s Vocab. col. 616, l. 28, we have:—‘Timpanum, a taber, or a tymbre.’ In Allit. Poems, ed. Morris, ii. 1414, we read of the sound of ‘tymbres and tabornes,’ and of ‘symbales,’ i. e. cymbals. In King Alisaunder, ed. Weber, 191, we again have tymbres meaning ‘timbrels.’ Wyclif, in his tr. of Isaiah, v. 12, has ‘tymbre and trumpe,’ to translate ‘tympanum et tibia’; and the word is well preserved in the mod. E. dimin. timbr-el.

[770.]

saylours, dancers; from O. F. saillir, Lat. salere; cf. ‘Salyyn, salio’; Prompt. Parv. The M. E. sailen, to dance, occurs in P. Plowman, C xvi. 208 (see my note); and in Rob. of Glouc. l. 5633 (or p. 278, ed. Hearne).

[791.]

Ne bede I. The Fr. text means—‘I would never seek to go away.’ As e and o are constantly confused, I change bode (which gives no sense) into bede; i. e. ‘I would never pray.’ Bede is the pt. t. subj. of bidden, to pray. Gower uses ne bede in the same sense; ‘That I ne bede never awake’; Conf. Am. ii. 99.

[826.]

girdilstede, the stead or place of the girdle, i. e. the waist.

[836.]

samyt, samite, a very rich silk; see Halliwell and my Etym. Dict.

[840.]

to-slitered, very much ‘slashed’ with small cuts. It is well known that slashed or snipped sleeves, shewing the colour of the lining beneath them, were common in the Tudor period; and it here appears that they were in vogue much earlier. Sliteren is the frequentative form of sliten, to slit.

[843.]

decoped, cut, slashed. The shoes were slashed like the dress; the Fr. text has here decopes, which, only just above, is translated by to-slitered. Cf. the expression ‘galoches y-couped’ in P. Plowman, C. xxi. 12, and see my note on that passage. Halliwell is quite wrong in confusing decoped with coppid, i. e. peaked. See note to Mill. Ta. A 3318.

[860.]

The readings pleye, pley are evidently false; the scribe has omitted the stroke for n above the vowel. The right reading is obviously playn, i. e. plain, smooth; it translates F. poli, just as frounceles translates sans fronce, without a wrinkle.

[865.]

If the reader prefers to keep eleven (or twelve) syllables in this line, I am sorry for him.

[869.]

orfrays, gold embroidery; see note to l. 562. In this case, the gold seems to have been embroidered on silk; see l. 872.

[886.]quistroun, a kitchen-boy, scullion. Godefroy gives the forms coistron, coitron, coisteron, quistron, coestron, with the sense ‘marmiton.’ His examples include the expressions ‘coitron de la cuisine,’ and ‘un quistroun de sa quisyne.’ The addition of de la (sa) cuisine shew that the word meant no more than ‘boy’ or ‘lad’; such a lad as was often employed in the kitchen.

• ‘Ther nas knave, ne quystron,
• That he ne hadde god waryson’;
• King Alisaunder, ed. Weber, 2511.

[892.]

amorettes, (probably) love-knots. Such seems also to be the meaning in the passage in the Kingis Quair, st. 47, which was probably imitated from the present one. But both passages are sufficiently obscure. The word occurs again, below, in l. 4755, where the meaning is different, viz. young girls, sweethearts; but we must remember that it is there employed by a different translator. In the present passage, the Fr. text is obscure, and it is possible that par fines amoretes means ‘by beautiful girls.’ The note in Bell’s Chaucer says accordingly:—‘these flowers were painted by amorous young ladies;’ and adds that ‘with here means by.’ But this will hardly serve. We have no proof that Chaucer so understood the French; and if ‘with means by’ here, it must have the same sense in l. 894, which would mean that birds, leopards, and lions all lent a hand in painting. On the whole, the sense ‘love-knots’ seems the safest.

[893.]

losenges and scochouns, lozenges (or diamond-shaped figures) and escutcheons.

[911.]

felden, caused to fall, knocked off.

[914.]

chalaundre; see note to l. 81. wodewale; see note to l. 658.

[915.]

archaungel, supposed to mean ‘a titmouse,’ answering to F. mesange. But no other example of this use is known.

[923.]

This line is too long; I omit ful wel devysed, which is not in the original.

[933.]

thwiten, cut, shaped; pp. of thwyten, to cut (see Hous of Fame, 1938); cf. thwitel in the Reves Ta. A 3933, and E. whittle.

[938.]

gadeling, vagabond; see Gamelyn, 102, 106.

[971.]

The idea of the two sets of arrows is taken from Ovid, Met. i. 468-471.

[998.]

William de Lorris did not live to fulfil this promise.

[1008.]

I. e. Beauty was also the name of an arrow; see l. 952. The allegory is rather of a mixed kind.

[1014.]

byrde, i. e. bride (though the words are different); Fr. espousee. bour, bower; the usual name for a lady’s chamber.

[1018.]

I alter the wintred of the old copies to windned, to make the form agree with that in l. 1020. To windre is evidently a form suggested by the Fr. guignier. There are two verbs of this form; the more common is guigner, to wink (see Cotgrave); the other is given by Godefroy as guignier, guigner, guingnier, guinier, gignier, with the senses ‘parer, farder,’ i. e. to trick out. Note the original line: ‘Ne fu fardee ne guignie’; and again in l. 2180: ‘Mais ne te farde ne guigne.’ The sense, in the present passage, is evidently ‘to trim,’ with reference to the eyebrows. ‘Her eyebrows were not artificially embellished.’

Poppen, in l. 1019, has much the same sense, and is evidently allied to F. popin, ‘spruce, neat, briske, trimme, fine,’ in Cotgrave.

[1031.]

I read Wys for want of a better word; it answers to one sense of Lat. sapidus, whence the F. sade is derived. However, Cotgrave explains sade by ‘pretty, neat, spruce, fine, compt, minion, quaint.’ Perhap Queint or Fine would do better.

[1049.]

in hir daungere, under her control; see Prol. A 663, and the note. And see l. 1470.

[1050.]

losengere, deceiver, flatterer; see Non. Pr. Ta. B 4516; Legend of Good Women, 352. Cf. ll. 1056, 1064 below.

[1057.]

‘And thus anoint the world with (oily) words.’

[1058.]

I cannot find that there is any such word as prill (as in Th.) or prile (as in G.) in any suitable sense; the word required is clearly prikke. As it was usual to write kk like lk, the word probably looked, to the eye, like prilke, out of which prille may have been evolved. Numerous mistakes have thus arisen, such as rolke for rokke (a rock) in Gawain Douglas, and many more of the same kind. M. Michel here quotes an O. F. proverb—‘Poignez vilain, il vous oindra: Oignez vilain, il vous poindra.’

[1068.]

Read aryved, for the Fr. text has arives; cf. Ho. Fame, 1047.

[1079.]

bend, band, strip; as used in heraldry.

[1080.]

Read améled, as in Speght; of which enameled is a lengthened form, with the prefix en-. It signifies ‘enamelled.’ Palsgrave gives a good example. ‘I ammell, as a goldesmyth dothe his worke, Iesmaille. Your broche is very well amelled: vostre deuise est fort bien esmaillee.’ See Ameled in the New Eng. Dict. See also the long note in Warton (sect. xiii, where this passage is quoted) on enamelling in the middle ages. He cites the Latin forms amelitam and amelita in the sense ‘enamelled,’ and shews that the art flourished, in particular, at Limoges in France.

[1081.]

of gentil entaile, of a fine shape, referring to her neck, apparently; or it may refer to the collar. Halliwell quotes from MS. Douce 291 ‘the hors of gode entaile,’ i. e. of a good shape. Cf. entaile, to shape, in l. 609 above; and see l. 3711.

[1082.]

shet, shut, i. e. clasped, fastened. Chevesaile, a collar; properly, the neckband of the robe, as explained in the New E. Dict. Though it does not here occur in the Fr. text, it occurs below in a passage which Chaucer does not exactly translate, though it answers to the ‘colere’ of l. 1190, q. v. There seems to be no sufficient reason for explaining it by ‘necklace’ or ‘gorget,’ as if it were a separable article of attire. It answers to a Lat. type capitiale, from capitium, the opening in a tunic through which the head passed; which explains how the word arose.

[1089.]

The right word is thurte, which the scribe, not understanding, has turned into durst; both here, and in l. 1324 below. Thurte him means ‘he needed,’ the exact sense required. The use of the dative him is a clear trace of the use of this phrase.

The idea that a gem would repel venom was common; see P. Plowman, B. ii. 14, and my note.

[1093.]

and Fryse, and Friesland. Not in the original, and merely added for the rime.

[1094.]

mourdaunt, mordant, chape, tag. Halliwell explains it ‘the tongue of a buckle,’ which is probably a guess; it is often mentioned as if it were quite distinct from it. It was probably ‘the metal chape or tag fixed to the end of a girdle or strap,’ viz. to the end remote from the buckle; see Fairholt’s ‘Costume.’ Godefroy explains it in the same way; it terminated the dependent end of the girdle; and this explains how it could be made of a stone. Warton, in a note on this passage (sect. xiii.), quotes from a wardrobe roll, in which there is mention of one hundred garters ‘cum boucles, barris, et pendentibus de argento.’

[1103.]

barres, bars; fixed transversely to the satin tissue of the girdle, and perforated to receive the tongue of the buckle. See note to Prol. A 329.

[1106.]

‘In each bar was a bezant-weight of gold.’ A bezant was a gold coin, originally struck at Byzantium, whence the name. It ‘varied in weight between the English sovereign and half-sovereign, or less’; New E. Dict.

[1117.]

The false reading ragounces is easily corrected by the original. In Lydgate’s Chorle and Bird, st. 34, we find:—‘There is a stone which called is iagounce.’ Warton rather hastily identifies it with the jacinth. Godefroy says that some make it to be a jacinth, but others, a garnet. Warnke explains iagunce (in Marie de France, Le Fraisne, 130) by ‘ruby.’

[1120.]

carboucle, carbuncle; see notes to Ho. Fame, 1352, 1363.

[1137.]

That is, he would have expected to be accused of a crime equal to theft or murder, if he had kept in his stable such a horse as a hackney. The F. text has roucin, whence Chaucer’s rouncy, in Prol. A 390.

[1148.]

I. e. as if his wealth had been poured into a garner, like so much wheat. daungere here means ‘parsimony.’

[1152.]

I. e. Alexander was noted for his liberality.

[1163.]

to hir baundon, (so as to be) at her disposal.

[1182.]

adamaunt, lodestone; leyd therby, laid beside it.

[1188.]

The form sarlynysh (in G.) evidently arose from the common mistake of reading a long s (f) as an l. The right reading is, of course, Sarsinesshe, i. e., Saracenic, or coloured by an Eastern dye. Compare the mod. E. sarsnet, a derivative from the same source.

[1190.]

Her neck-band was thrown open, because she had given away the brooch, with which she used to fasten it.

[1201.]

The reading gousfaucoun is a queer mistake; the scribe seems to have thought that it meant a goshawk! But the sense is ‘war-banner.’ See Gonfanon in my Etym. Dict.

[1215.]

at poynt devys, with great exactness, with great regularity; cf. l. 830. The same expression occurs in the Ho. of Fame, 917.

[1216.]

tretys, long and well-shaped; hence this epithet, as applied to the nose of the Prioress; see Prol. A 152. See ll. 932, 1016.

[1227.]

bistad, bestead; i. e. hard beset.

[1232.]

sukkenye, an E. adaptation of the O. F. sorquanie. Cotgrave has: ‘Souquenie, f. a canvas Jacket, frock, or Gaberdine; such a one as our Porters wear.’ Mod. F. souquenille, a smock-frock. It was therefore a loose frock, probably made, in this case, of fine linen. For a note in the glossary to Méon’s edition says that linen was sometimes the material used for it; and we are expressly told, in the text, that it was not made of hempen hards. Cf. Russ. sukno, cloth.

[1235.]

rideled, ‘gathered,’ or pleated; F. coillie. Not ‘pierced like a riddle,’ as suggested in Bell’s Chaucer, but gathered in folds like a curtain or a modern surplice; from O. F. ridel (F. rideau), a curtain. Cf. ‘filettis, and wymplis, and rydelid gownes and rokettis, colers, lacis,’ &c.; Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. 41. Hence, in ll. 1236, 7, the statement that every point was in its right place; because it was so evenly gathered.

[1240.]

‘A roket, or rochet, is a loose linen frock synonymous with sukkenye. The name is now appropriated to the short surplice worn by bishops over their cassocks.’—Bell.

[1249, 50.]

Al hadde he be, even if he had been. As the French copy consulted by Warton here omitted two lines of the original, Warton made the singular mistake of supposing that, in l. 1250, Chaucer intended ‘a compliment to some of his patrons.’ But William de Lorris died in 1260, so that the seignor de Gundesores was ‘Henry of Windsor,’ as he was sometimes termed1 , i. e. no other than Henry III; and the reference was probably suggested by the birth of prince Edward in 1239, unless these two lines were added somewhat later.

[1263.]

avenant, comely, graceful; see the New E. Dict.

[1282.]

The absolutely necessary correction in this line was suggested by Ten Brink, in his Chaucer Studien, p. 30.

[1284.]

volage, flighty, giddy; see Manc. Ta. H 239.

[1294.]

I should like to read—‘They ne made force of privetee’; pronounced They n’ mad-e, &c. But no fors is usual.

[1321.]

his thankes, willingly; see Kn. Ta. A 1626, 2107.

[1324.]

durst is an error for thurte; see note to l. 1089.

[1334.]

For hadde (which gives no sense), read bad; confusion of b and h is not uncommon. And for bent, read bende it; see l. 1336.

[1341.]

Some mending of the text is absolutely necessary, because shette is altogether a false form; the pp. of sheten, to shoot, is shoten. The suggested emendation satisfies the conditions, and makes better sense. So, in l. 1343, read wol me greven.

[1348.]

In ll. 1461, 1582, the F. vergier is translated by yerde. So here, and in l. 1447 (as Dr. Kaluza suggests) we must read yerde in, to make sense. The scribe easily turned yerde in into gardin, but ruined the sense by it. So in l. 1366, yerde would be better than gardin.

[1359.]

greet foisoun, a great abundance (of them).

[1361.]

notemygge is the form given in the Prompt. Parv. In Sir Topas, 1953, notemuge occurs in all the seven MSS. See note to the same, B 1950, which explains clow-gelofre, i. e. clove, and setewale, i. e., zedoary.

[1363.]

The form alemandres is justified by the Fr. text, which has Alemandiers. The O. F. for ‘almond’ was at first alemande, before it was shortened to almande; see Almond in the New E. Dict. The sense is ‘almond-trees.’

[1369.]

parys or paris is a stupid blunder for paradys, as the Fr. text shews. It was a well-known term. Cotgrave has ‘Graine de paradis, the spice called Grains.’ Philips explains Paradisi grana as ‘cardamum-seed.’ Compare the quotation from Langham in the New E. Dict., s. v. Cardamom. Canelle (in l. 1370) is ‘cinnamon.’

[1374.]

coyn is the word which has been twisted into quin; and the pl. quins has become the sing. quince.

[1377.]

aleys. ‘Aley [adapted from O. Fr. alie, alye (also alis), mod. Fr. alise, alize, from O. H. G. eliza, mod. G. else(beere); the suppression of the s in the O. Fr. is anomalous.] The fruit of the Wild-Service tree’; New E. Dict. No other example of the word is known in English. bolas, bullace; the rime is only a single one.

[1379.]

lorer, laurel; miswritten lorey in G.; cf. l. 1313 above, where loreres is miswritten loreyes.

[1384.]

Compare the tree-lists in Parl. Foules, 176, and in the Kn. Ta. A 2921.

[1385.]

I should read Pyn, ew, instead of Fyn ew; only we have had pyn already, in l. 1379.

[1391.]

Imitated in the Book Duch. 419; again, l. 1401 is imitated in the same, 429.

[1397, 8.]

The rimed words must needs be knet, set, as in the Parl. Foules, 627, 628.

[1405.]

claperes, burrows. ‘Clapier, m. A clapper of conies, a heap of stones, &c., whereinto they retire themselves’; Cotgrave. See Clapper in the New E. Dict.

[1414.]

condys, conduits; Fr. text, conduis. Godefroy gives numerous examples of conduis as the pl. of O. F. conduit, in the sense of safe-conduct, &c. So, in the Ayenbite of Inwyt, p. 91, we find:—‘Thise uif wytes byeth ase uif condwys,’ i. e. these five wits (senses) are as five channels. by devys, by contrivances (l. 1413).

[1420.]

vel-u-et is here a trisyllabic word; and the u is a vowel, as in A. F. veluet. The mod. E. velvet arose from misreading the u as a v. The Prompt. Parv. has also the form velwet. So in Lydgate, Compl. of the Black Knight, l. 80: ‘And soft as vel-u-et,’ &c.

[1426.]

as mister was, as was need, as was necessary.

[1447.]

As garden makes no sense here, Kaluza reads yerde in; see note to l. 1348.

[1448.]

estres (F. text, l’estre), inner parts; see Rev. Ta. A 4295, and the note.

[1453.]

at good mes, to advantage, from a favourable position; Fr. enbel leu. In l. 3462, the phrase translates F. en bon point. Mes (Lat. missum) is an old Anglo-French hunting-term, answering (nearly) to mod. E. shot. Thus, in Marie de France, Guigemar, 87:—‘Traire voleit, si mes ëust,’ he wished to shoot, if he could get a good shot. See Ducange, ed. 1887, ix. 270, for two more examples.

[1458.]

Pepyn; the F. text says ‘Charles, the son of Pepin.’ Charles the Great, who died in 814, was the son of Pepin Le Bref, king of the Franks, who died in 768.

[1469.]

This story of Narcissus is from Ovid, Met. iii. 346.

[1470.]

in his daungere, within his control; in l. 1492, daungerous means ‘disdainful.’ See note to l. 1049.

[1498.]

The right spelling is vilaynsly; it occurs in the Pers. Tale, I 279; and the adj. vilayns in the same, I 627, 715, 854.

[1517, 18.]

The right spellings are sene, adj., visible, and shene, adj., showy, bright.

[1525.]

bere, bore; but it is in the subjunctive mood; A. S. bǣre.

[1537.]

warisoun, reward; F. guerredon. But this is not the usual sense; it commonly means healing, cure, or remedy; see Guarison in Cotgrave. However, it also means provision, store, assistance; whence it is no great step to the sense of ‘reward.’ To ‘winne a warisun’ is to obtain a reward; Will. of Palerne, 2253, 2259. Cf. note to l. 886.

[1550.]

scatheles, without harm. There is actually a touch of humour here; the poet ran no risk of falling in love with such a face as his own.

[1561.]

welmeth up, boils up, bubbles up; from A. S. wylm, a spring.

[1564.]

For moiste, because it was moist, because of its moisture. The adj. has almost the force of a sb. Cf. note to l. 276.

[1591.]

entrees is, of course, a blunder for estres, as the F. text shews. See l. 1448 above, where estres rightly occurs, to represent F. l’estre. accuseth, reveals, shews; see the New Eng. Dict.

[1604.]

‘That made him afterwards lie on his back,’ i. e. lie dead (F. mors). The alteration of lye to ligge in MS. G. is a clear example of the substitution of a Northern form.

[1608.]

Here laughyng is a very queer travesty of loving, owing to a similarity in the sound. But the F. text has d’amer, which settles it.

[1621.]

panteres, nets; see Leg. of Good Women, 131, and the note.

[1624.]

lacche, trap. The usual sense is ‘the latch of a door’; but the sense here given is clearly caught from the related verb lacchen, which sometimes meant to catch birds. Thus in P. Plowman, B. v. 355, we find ‘forto lacche foules,’ i. e. to catch birds. We must not confuse lacche, as here used, with lace, a snare.

[1641.]

We must read syked, not sighede, in order to rime with entryked. Observe that syketh rimes with entryketh in the Parl. of Foules, 404. Further, as the rime is a double one, the word have must be inserted, to fill up the line. It is in the Fr. text, ‘tant en ai puis souspire.’

[1652.]

enclos, enclosed; a French form, used for the rime. Cf. clos, in the same sense; The Pearl, l. 2.

[1663.]

Speght made the obvious correction of be, for me.

[1666.]

My thankes, with my goodwill; cf. his thankes, l. 1321.

[1673.]

gret woon, a great quantity.

[1674.]

roon (in place of Rone); F. text, sous ciaus, ‘under the skies.’ Bell suggests that there is a reference to the river Rhone, and to the roses of Provence. But the prep. in must mean ‘in’ or ‘upon’; and as roses do not grow on a river, but upon bushes, perhaps roon answers to Lowland Scotch rone, a bush; see Jamieson. Thus Henrysoun, Prol. to Moral Fables, l. 15, has:—‘The roisis reid arrayit on rone and ryce’; and G. Douglas has ronnis, bushes. In Roon might mean ‘in Rouen’; spelt Roon in Shakespeare.

[1677.]

moysoun, size; Cotgrave has: ‘Moyson, size, bignesse, quantity’; from Lat. mensionem, a measuring. See P. Plowman, C. xii. 120, and my note. Not connected with moisson, harvest, as suggested in Bell.

[1701.]

‘The stalk was as upright as a rush.’

[1705.]Here ends Chaucer’s portion of the translation, in the middle of an incomplete sentence, without any verb. It may have been continued thus (where dide fulfild = caused to be filled):—

• The swote smelle sprong so wyde,
• That it dide al the place aboute
• Fulfild of baume, withouten doute.

We can easily understand that the original MS. ended here suddenly, the rest being torn away or lost. An attempt was made to join on another version, without observing the incompleteness of the sentence. Moreover, the rime is a false one, since swote and aboute have different vowel-sounds. Hence the point of junction becomes visible enough.

Dr. Max Kaluza was the first to observe the change of authorship at this point, though he made Chaucer’s portion end at l. 1704. He remarked, very acutely, that Chaucer translates the F. bouton by the word knoppe; see ll. 1675, 1683, 1685, 1691, 1702, whereas the other translator merely keeps the word botoun; see ll. 1721, 1761, 1770.

It is easily seen that ll. 1706-5810 are by a second and less skilful hand. This portion abounds with non-Chaucerian rimes, as explained in the Introduction, and is not by any means remarkable for accuracy. Some of the false rimes are noted below.

As the remaining portion is of less interest and value, I only draw attention, in the notes, to the most important points. I here denote the second portion (ll. 1706-5810) by the name of Section B.

[2522.]

‘To conceal (it) closely’; F. de soi celer.

[2561.]

‘Now groveling on your face, and now on your back.’

[2564.]

‘Like a man that should be defeated in war.’ To get a rime to abrede or abreed, abroad, read forwerreyd; see l. 3251.

[2573.]

‘Thou shalt imagine delightful visions.’ The ‘castles in Spain’ are romantic fictions. Cf. Gower, Conf. Am. ii. 99.

[2617, 2624.]

In both lines, wher is short for ‘whether.’

[2628.]

To liggen, to lie, is a Northern form; I alter liggen to ly, which occurs in the next line.

[2641.]

contene, contain (thyself). But the F. text has te contendras, which perhaps means ‘shalt struggle.’

[2650.]

What whider gives no sense; read What weder, i. e. whatever weather it be; see next line.

[2660.]

score, (perhaps) cut, i. e. crack; F. text, fendéure.

[2669.]

I supply a, i. e. by; or we may supply al.

[2676.]There is something wrong here; the F. text has:—

• ‘Si te dirai que tu dois faire
• Por l’amour de la debonnaire [or, du haut seintueire]
• De qui tu ne pues avoir aise;
• Au departir la porte baise.’

The lover is here directed to kiss the door!

[2684-6.]

From Ovid, Ars Amat. i. 729, 733.

[2695.]

All from Ovid, Ars Amat. ii. 251-260.

[2710.]

Read fare, short for faren, gone; cf. Ovid, Ars Am. ii. 357-8. A note in Bell says—‘fore means absent, from the Lat. foris, abroad.’ This is a cool invention.

[2775.]

Hope, do thou hope; imperative mood.

[2824.]The reading not ben ruins sense and metre.

• ‘Et se tu l’autre refusoies,
• Qui n’est mie mains doucereus,
• Tu seroies moult dangereus.’

[2883.]

Such was the duty of sworn brethren; See Kn. Ta. A 1132.

[2888.]

The trilled r in darst perhaps constitutes a syllable.

[2951.]

‘When the God of Love had all day taught me.’

[2971.]

hay(e), hedge; F. haie. Perhaps not hay-e; see l. 2987.

[2984.]

Bial-Acoil, another spelling of Bel-Acueil, i. e. ‘a graceful address’; which would be useful in propitiating the lady.

[3105.]

doth me drye, makes me suffer; Scotch ‘gars me dree.’

[3132.]

chere, face; kid, manifested, displayed.

[3137.]

kirked, probably ‘crooked,’ as Morris suggests. It may be a mere dialectal form of ‘crooked,’ or it may be miswritten for kroked, the usual old spelling. Halliwell gives, ‘kirked, turning upwards,’ on the authority of Skinner; but a reference to Skinner shows that his reason for giving the word this sense was solely owing to a notion of deriving it from A. S. cerran, to turn, which is out of the question. On the strength of this Wright, in his Provincial Dictionary, makes up the verb: ‘Kirk, to turn upwards.’ This is how glossaries are frequently written. The F. text merely has: ‘Le nes froncié.’

[3144.]

maugree, disfavour, ill will.

[3185.]

with the anger, against the pain.

[3231.]

trasshed, betrayed; F. traï. Trasshen is from the stem traiss-.